118 RTs In Jakarta Flooded, Acting Governor Heru Still Hopes For Sodetan And Normalization Of Ciliwung River

Residents followed the village road which was flooded by the runoff of the Ciliwung River in Cawang, East Jakarta, Thursday, February 20, 2020. (ANTARA PHOTO-Aditya Pradana Putra)

JAKARTA - Twice a month, President Jokowi visited the Ciliwung River, directly reviewing the normalization and sodetan for flood management in Jakarta. Heru also answered the two projects when asked about the flood management that hit DKI until Monday, February 27 evening.

"The handling of normalization and then sodetan," Heru told VOI, Monday, February 27.

However, Heru said hundreds of flood points that submerged the Jakarta area as of this afternoon had been tried to overcome it since it appeared.

Regional Apparatus Work Units or SKPDs including DKI Jakarta Fire Department personnel were dispatched to flood locations. They struggled to carry out suction in a number of areas to move flooding to the water flow route.

"Earlier, the Mayor also asked the head of the fire service to come down and also asked for a suction," said Heru.

Heru also claimed to have ordered the DKI Water Resources Agency to directly monitor the flood points that hit DKI Jakarta today.

Within a month, Jokowi directly inspected the Ciliwung River to ensure that the normalization and sodetan projects run optimally after long stalled land acquisition constraints in the Anies Baswedan era.

This year, Jokowi visited the East Jakarta Ciliwung River drain project on Tuesday, January 24. Jokowi's visit was also part of the series of connected Sodetan Kali Ciliwung on Jalan Otista III.

Approximately a month passed, Jokowi monitored the normalization process for the Ciliwung River on Tuesday, February 21. At that time, Jokowi emphasized that payments and land acquisition would soon be completed so that the handling of Jakarta floods from upstream of Ciawi and Sukamahi Dams to downstream in DKI would run smoothly.

In the midst of the normalization and sodetan project, 4 roads and 118 RTs in DKI were flooded as of Monday 27 February at 17.00 WIB. Data on areas affected by Jakarta floods has increased from the previous 3 roads and 104 RTs.

"The inundation is targeted to recede in a short time," wrote the DKI Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) in a statement.