Megawati Criticizes Country's Disaster Early Warning System
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7 January 2020 12:58 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) chair Megawati Soekarnoputri expressed hopes that the Indonesian government would learn from Japan and its citizens in facing natural disasters. She also shared her experience in the country of the rising sun when an earthquake occurred.
The country's fifth president recalled that she and the family were about to leave the restaurant as they felt a tremor. Yet, the Japanese people who accompanied them forbade them from doing so.
“My Japanese friend said we don’t need to run as there will be an announcement when we should run. Japan has a disaster alarm,” said Megawati in a sideline event of her agenda in Tokyo, Japan, as quoted from a written statement, January 7.
According to her, the first alarm means that residents were asked to be vigilant, and the second one means that residents are asked to leave the building they are in.
"So that's how it is. Japan has a good early warning system., unlike us [Indonesia], we even don’t have one," she added.
The eldest daughter of the country’s first president, Soekarno, said the government must consider having an early warning system. She claimed that she had initiated the idea by forming Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) when she served as the country’s vice president and president.
“Now that BMKG had been established, why the people are not educated or trained [about disaster mitigation]?” she questioned.
As the chair of the steering board of the Agency for Pancasila Ideology Education (BPIP), Megawati Soekarnoputri promised that she would further encouraged massive dissemination on disaster awareness as it was promoted in Japan.
BUDIARTI UTAMI PUTRI