PUPR Minister Basuki Hadimuljono Ready To Carry Out Engineering To Handle Floods In Sintang

PUPR Minister Basuki Hadimuljono (right) talks with Sintang Regent Jarot Winarno (second left) (Jessica Helena Wuysang/Antara)

JAKARTA - Minister of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Basuki Hadimuljono said he was ready to carry out engineering for flood management in Sintang Regency, West Kalimantan, especially in the face of predictions of major floods that will occur again in January to March 2022.

"The prediction from the BMKG that there will be even greater flooding, so we need short-term flood control engineering with giofak," said Basuki Hadimuljono, while reviewing flood conditions in Sintang, West Kalimantan, Thursday.

Currently, he is just reviewing and immediately taking measurements with giofak for the implementation of flood control engineering, as was done in North Lubuk.

"My friend from Balai Sungai will take measurements soon, so later I will make it with giofak, not sandbags now, but giofak, it's stronger for flowing water," he said.

The Minister of PUPR said that he would technically report the incident in Sintang to President Joko Widodo.

"So I came here on the orders of the president, before he might come here, I was asked to report technically, if non-technical things have been done by the Minister of Social Affairs and the Chairman of Commission V DPR RI," he said.

He added that the slope of the Kapuas River from 1,100 kilometers is only 40 kilometers from upstream to downstream, so it is very gentle so that it is winding.

While the Melawi river is steeper, it is faster to hold the Kapuas river, that's why flooding occurs here.

"Melawi brown and Kapuas rivers are clearer, meaning that in Melawi the upstream part is more damaged than Kapuas, damaged not because of anything, it can be caused by landslides or also mining and forest clearing, so all kinds of things," he said.

He said that the first thing he would do was flood control.

"The road repairs at Lintas Melawi are actually already under contract, but because of the flood, we can't do it. So we first deal with the floods so they don't get inundated," said Basuki Hadimuljono.

The visit of the Minister of PUPR to the flood location in Sintang, West Kalimantan was accompanied by the Chairman of Commission V of the DPR RI Lasarus and the Regent of Sintang, Jarot Winarno.