President Joko Widodo has instructed his staff to be more vigilante to ensure that people would feel safe and secure during the 2022 Christmas and 2023 New Year holidays.
By
Kompas Team
·4 minutes read
MAWAR KUSUMA WULAN/KOMPAS
President Joko Widodo gave a number of directions ahead of Christmas in 2022 and the new year 2023 in a limited meeting held at the Presidential Office, Jakarta, on Monday, 19 December 2022.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Around 44 million people are expected to travel during the Christmas 2022 and New Year 2023 holidays. To anticipate potentially high mobility, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has instructed his staff to be more vigilant to ensure that people would feel safe and secure.
“I just want to give a reminder that the Transportation Policy Agency’s survey predicts that 44 million people will be traveling this Christmas and New Year,” President Jokowi said in his opening remarks at a closed-door meeting on Christmas 2022 and New Year 2023 preparations, held at the Presidential Office in Jakarta on Monday (19/12/2022).
Furthermore, the President asked all stakeholders to prepare in anticipation of various kinds of disturbances and issues.
“We must prepare for Christmas and New Year so that the people feel safe and secure,” said the President.
We must prepare for Christmas and New Year so that the people feel safe and secure.
After the meeting, Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Muhadjir Effendy elaborated on President Jokowi’s instructions.
According to Muhadjir, the President had also told his staff to secure food and fuel supplies during the year-end holiday period, as well as to remain vigilant over security during religious activities for Christmas and New Year’s events.
“The President ordered us to ensure that all activities related to Christmas and New Year run smoothly, safely and well,” said National Police chief Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo following the meeting.
Posts
According to Listyo, the government has already drawn up a strategy to regulate the flow of traffic.
“There are approximately 56,636 points that we will secure, which consist of churches, shopping centers, [bus] terminals, train stations, ports, airports, tourist attractions and venues for New Year’s celebrations,” he said.
The police chief also said that 2,629 posts had been prepared, including security posts, service posts and integrated posts.
KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA
Prospective passengers line up for check-in at the Air Transport Service Post for Christmas 2022 and New Year 2023 at Terminal 1 of Juanda International Airport Surabaya in Sidoarjo, East Java, Monday (19/12/2022).
Separately, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said the increase in Covid-19 cases and high public mobility over Christmas and New Year required proper management by all related parties.
“Thus, the [key objectives] must be safety, security and health,” Budi said on Monday, during an online event to inaugurate the Christmas-New Year Command Post.
Mapping the risk of acts of terrorism, traffic jams and natural disasters in South Sumatra has started, as revealed at a cross-sectoral coordination meeting on the 2022 Lilin Musi (candlelight) Operation at the South Sumatra Police headquarters in Palembang.
The Jambi administration is allowing religious activities for Christmas and New Year’s event to be held freely as they were before the Covid-19 pandemic.
“[It] is important that everyone look after each other” to anticipate Covid-19 transmission, said Jambi Mayor Syarif Fasha.
Meanwhile, the Downstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Agency (BPH Migas) is coordinating with Pertamina to set up 114 fuel terminals, more than 7,400 general refueling stations and 68 aircraft refueling depots. Supplies of fuel, including gasoline, diesel, kerosene and avtur, are generally secure.
“[Fuel] supply resilience is above everyday activities. The predictions are that there will be an increase in [the level of] daily refueling during Christmas and New Year,” said BPH Migas head Erika Retnowati.
Pertamina’s South Sumatra area manager for communication relations and CSR, Patra Niaga Nikho Indrawewan, also made assurances that fuel supplies were sufficient, and that all infrastructure were on the alert.
Weather conditions
Pertamina Sulawesi regional executive general manager Erwin Dwiyanto added that his side was also watching out for weather disturbances and natural disasters that could disrupt fuel distribution.
Meanwhile, basic commodity prices in North Sumatra are slowly rising ahead of the Christmas and New Year holiday period, due to low supply because of bad weather over the last few weeks.
General manager Sisyani Jaffar of Surabaya’s Juanda International Airport estimated that 627,486 air passengers with a daily average of 35,000 passengers were expected over the Christmas and New Year holidays, or an increase of 70 percent compared to the same period last year.
Passenger volume projections indicated that 827,779 passengers, both domestic and international, would be passing through I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport in Badung, Bali, over the year-end holiday period, double the figure in 2021.
Separately, Isak Luhukay, the head of South Kalimantan’s Christmas 2022-New Year 2023 integrated marine transport post, said an increased number of sea passengers were expected in Banjarmasin over the Christmas-New Year holiday, though not as significant as during the Idul Fitri holiday. (WKM/Z11/RAM/ITA/Z17/REN/NSA/NIK/COK/JUM/VIO/ FLO)
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