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ictims of the Mount Sinabung eruption in Karo regency, North Sumatra, say assistance funds have been siphoned off by authorities and that they are prepared to file a lawsuit.

Sinabung evacuation field coordinator Rudi Sembiring, from Gurukinayan village, said he had evidence that could be used in court.

'€œWe have complete data, including markups of the number of evacuees,'€ Rudi told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Rudi said markups of the number of evacuees occurred in virtually every village affected by the Mt. Sinabung eruption. He cited Gurukinayan, where the number of evacuees was inflated by 90 persons, as an example.

He added that some 200 families had been denied aid, despite being listed as evacuees.

He said he had planned to publicly reveal the allegations at a rally on Friday, but was unable to do so because the Karo Police failed to issue a permit.

In another rally planned for Monday, Rudi said the group would demand meals and housing allowances, which they had not received for the past four months.

'€œWe received Rp 5,000 [39 US cents] per person daily in meal allowances when we first took shelter. Then, we were given Rp 2 million for a house and for a farm-lease for each family. However, we no longer receive the aid even though the government promised to disperse it every six months,'€ said Rudi, who lives in a hut with his family because he has no money for rent.

Evacuees receiving meals and housing allowances hail from Suka Meriah, Simacem, Bekerah, Gurukinayan, Berastepu, Gamber and Kuta Tonggol villages, all of which are located in the red zone, or the area between a 3 and 5 kilometer radius of the path of the pyroclastic flow. They are being relocated to Siosar in Merek district in two stages.

In the initial stage, 370 families from Suka Meriah, Simacem and Bekerah will be relocated, while in the second stage 1,600 families from Gurukinayan, Berastepu, Gamber and Kuta Tonggol villages will be relocated.

Another evacuee, Susanto Ginting, said meal and housing allowances were likely embezzled.

'€œMaybe its because we were quiet that we weren'€™t given the money. We have been living in uncertainty for four months already,'€ said Susanto.

Separately, Karo Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) head Subur Tambun denied that the assistance funds were misappropriated.

'€œEverything is managed transparently and openly. We are ready to be audited,'€ Subur told the Post.

Regarding the meal and housing allowances demanded by evacuees, Subur said the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) would distribute the assistance funds on Feb. 25.

'€œWe will hand them over together with funds for the cash-for-work program for the evacuees we will repatriate,'€ said Subur, declining to elaborate on the reason for the delay.

At the time of writing, Karo Regent Terkelin Brahmana could not be reached for comment.

Sinabung opened a new chapter in its history in August 2010, with its first modern time eruption since the previous one in 1600.

The highest volcano in North Sumatra quietened in September 2010, but its rumbling intensified three years later.

The 2,460-meter volcano showed increasing activity again in November 2013, prompting the authorities to raise the alert status one level. People living within a 5-km radius of the volcano were re-evacuated.