Alms seekers swarm city hall

Indah Setiawati ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 10/03/2008 11:32 AM  |  City

Dozens of people waited in vain in front of City Hall on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan, Central Jakarta, on Thursday, hoping to get a package of small gifts and money like thousands of earlier visitors had.

After waiting for about an hour in front of the gates in stifling heat, they went home disappointed.

On the second day of Idul Fitri, Governor Fauzi Bowo and Deputy Governor Prijanto welcomed people at City Hall's open house to celebrate with festivities.

After shaking hands with city authorities, guests' thumbs were ink stamped. Each guest was later provided with a goody bag containing Rp 20,000 (US$2) in cash, powdered milk drink for children, candies, snacks, cakes and biscuits.

Mercia, 35, said her neighbors showed off their gifts, then she and her family set out straight away by bajaj, (a three-wheeled motorized taxi) from their house in Senen in Central Jakarta, to City Hall.

"Six of us squeezed into a bajaj to get here but we got nothing. I'm very disappointed," she said.

The street vendor said they would keep waiting in case the city decided to open the building again. "Who knows? Maybe they stopped for a bit to perform afternoon prayers."

More than two thousand people stood in line outside City Hall gates starting at eight in the morning. The alms were all distributed within two hours, by 10.

Many of them were annual visitors, who come to the city hall, houses of the president or vice president, or other wealthy people who might show their philanthropic side during Idul Fitri.

Learning from their experience with last year's huge crowds at the city's open house, Ratna Manurung and her husband were better prepared this year.

They, together with their sister-in-law and her son, drove in on two motorcycles from their house in Cakung, East Jakarta, early in the morning, bringing along food and drinks.

"I think the goody bag and the money added up to more than last year's Rp 50,000," Ratna said, smiling with satisfaction.

Fauzi said the distributed goody bags might be only a token, but the administration wanted to give some attention to city residents.

"Even though many may not be actual city residents and, I imagine, half of them don't even have city ID cards, we wanted to give them some recognition," he said, adding some visitors stopped in at various open houses in the city, on this major day of charitable giving.

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