Governor Heru Observes the Kalibaru Embankment Makes an Excitement, Residents Think Jokowi's Entourage Visits His Village

Acting Governor Heru Budi when meeting with residents (Photo: Diah Ayu/VOI)

JAKARTA - The fishing village in Kalibaru Urban Village, Cilincing, North Jakarta created an uproar when the Governor of DKI Jakarta Heru Budi Hartono, and his staff visited the beach embankment this afternoon.

As soon as the row of cars in which Heru and the related regional work unit (SKPD) arrived at the location, residents suddenly came out of their houses and rushed to Heru.

Starting from fathers, and mothers, to children, they enthusiastically followed Heru and his staff's observations on the embankment at Plaza Kalibaru. Even Heru's figure was invisible from a distance.

However, many of them shouted at each other and thought that this group was President Joko Widodo and his staff.

"Mr. Jokowi, wow, Mr. Jokowi!" cried the children of Kalibaru residents, Friday, January 20.

As they approached the group, several of them realized that their estimates were wrong. There is no Jokowi on the Kalibaru embankment this afternoon. However, this did not dampen their enthusiasm. Some of the children were also asked to take pictures with Heru during the inspection.

For information, the dike in Kalibaru was completed in early January 2023. The beach embankment, which is equipped with a polder retention pond, stretches 3.2 kilometers long.

The Kalibaru embankment is part of the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) project which is used as an effort to control sea level rise and prevent tidal flooding into residents' settlements.

Overall, the coastal embankment in the NCICD project was built 33 kilometers along the coast of North Jakarta. The work is divided into two. The PUPR Ministry is working on an 11-kilometer coastal embankment, and 22 kilometers are being carried out by the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government.