567 Cattle Aid To Riau Detained By East Java Quarantine, Head Of Livestock Service Disappointed

A total of 567 donated cows for the people of Riau were detained in East Java (Photo Via ANTARA)

PEKANBARU - Head of the Animal Husbandry and Animal Health Service (PKH) Riau, Herman, expressed his disappointment regarding the 567 donated cattle for the Riau people who were detained at the Bangkalan Agricultural Quarantine, Class II Agricultural Quarantine Station Bangkalan, East Java (East Java).

"After detaining the cows, 5 of them died of exhaustion, even though the delivery of the cows was equipped with a Health Certificate and other requirements," Herman told reporters in Pekanbaru, Antara, Friday, April 1.

He said the Riau Provincial Government had coordinated with the Director of Animal Health, Head of the Center for Animal Quarantine and Security, Ministry of Agriculture regarding the delivery of the cattle aid.

For the initial stage of assistance from the Riau Provincial Government, 567 cows were sent, or 30 percent of the total assistance of 1,883 cows. However, currently the 567 cows are still being held at the Agricultural Quarantine Agency, Class II Agricultural Quarantine Station Bangkalan, East Java.

"We are a little disappointed that the cattle donated by the community are being detained in the Bangkalan Quarantine, while Riau has communicated and coordinated with the Head of the Animal Quarantine Center, that the cattle assisted by the Riau Provincial Government from East Java may enter Riau, even though Riau is currently affected by the LSD outbreak," he said.

"But today the aid cattle for Riau are stuck in the Bangkalan Quarantine. The reason is that they are still waiting for instructions from the center, so we are confused about which center to go to. Even though we have coordinated with the Ministry of Agriculture, such as the Director of Animal Health and the Head of the Animal Quarantine Center. Ministry of Agriculture's Legal Bureau," he said.

To this day, five cows have been detained in the Bangkalan Quarantine, and five cows have died. All the cows that died had been given post-mortem, and as a result, all of them died of exhaustion because the quarantine capacity there was inadequate.

Meanwhile, his party has coordinated with a member of the Indonesian House of Representatives from the PDI-P faction, Effendi Sianipar, who noticed livestock entering Riau.

"He asked for a chronology of events, and we have conveyed them, including the results of the cow visum. Later he will discuss it with the Head of the Quarantine Center of the Ministry of Agriculture," he said.

In addition, his party has also discussed it with the cow procurement companion from the Civil and State Administrative Assistant (Asdatun), the Riau High Court (Kejati) to find a solution related to this problem.

"So later we will make a letter from the Governor which will be submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture, which will be copied to the Director General of Animal Health, and others. Due to this condition, the partners in the procurement of cows assisted by the Riau Provincial Government have complained about the costs that must be incurred to buy grass to eat cows.

So just one day, they spend Rp. 20 million for the procurement of grass. For five days the cows have been detained, apart from dead cows, there are also extra costs that must be incurred," he said.

Therefore, his party wants to ask on what basis the Bangkalan Quarantine holds cows for the people of Riau. If only Riau was affected by the LSD outbreak, the Governor of Riau had issued a circular that prohibited cattle leaving Riau, not cattle entering.

"We will even import the aid cows that are currently being held in captivity to areas that are not affected by the epidemic, such as Rokan Hilir (Rohil) and Kuantan Singingi (Kuansing)," he said.