TNI AD Helping Hands Make Residents Of Ex Timor-Timor Happy: Used To Get Clean Water From Rivers, Now Drilled Wells Help

General Chairman of the Indonesian Army Retired Army Lieutenant General (Ret.) Doni Monardo (left) Indika Energy President Director Arsjad Rasjid (center)/Via ANATRA

KUPANG - A number of former East Timorese in the village of Noelbaki, Kupang Regency, NTT stated that they were helped by drill wells built by the Indonesian Army with the private sector so that 2,518 people in the village got clean water for their daily needs.

Rosalina da Costa, who lives in a former East Timorese settlement in the village of Noelbaki, said that from 1999 to 2021 hundreds of residents in the settlement could only get clean water from the river.

"To get clean water, we have to walk about one kilometer to get water, so if we calculate it is two kilometers back and forth to get clean water," he said as quoted by Antara, Monday, July 11.

Rosalina admitted that it is quite difficult to get clean water even though the river that passes far from the settlement always releases water even in the long dry season.

To reduce the workload, local residents then joint ventures so that they can build a reservoir so they can take water from the river and put it in a water tank.

The head of RT 9C, Noelbaki village, Joao de Jesus, also admitted this. He said the existence of a water pump built by the TNI AD was supported by funds from the Indika Energy Group Foundation.

According to him, with the clean water wells provided by the Indonesian Army, now residents have no more trouble getting water, because so far apart from rivers, local residents have also taken it from drilled wells owned by residents which are not too far away.

"We hope that after the water well is built, we will be assisted again with pipes so that the flow of water can go directly to the house," he added.

Commander of the Army Strategic Reserves Command Lieutenant General Maruli Simanjuntak in his remarks during the inauguration of drilled wells in Noelbaki village said that there were 16 drilled wells called "Pejuang Drilling Wells" which were built by the Indonesian Army in NTT for 10,522 former East Timorese on Timor Island, NTT.

The dozens of drill wells were spread across five regencies on the island of Timor, namely Kupang Regency, South Central Timor, North Central Timor, Malacca, and Belu Regency.

The construction of dozens of drilled wells, he said, was due to the collaboration between Lieutenant General (Ret.) Doni Monardo, and the President Director of Indika Energy, who currently serves as Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Arsjad Rasjid.

Meanwhile, Arsjad Rasjid assesses that the need for water is very important for mankind, because currently the whole world is in an economic war.

"Therefore, the most important thing is mutual cooperation between the private sector, both by the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and also with the association of retired Army soldiers and also with the active TNI, namely with Mr. Maruli," he added.

These mutual cooperation efforts, he said, are to ensure that the Indonesian people are prosperous. This mutual cooperation can also spur other entrepreneurs to help fulfill clean water in NTT.