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Daughter sues gov, mayor for dad's death
Bumpy ride: Motorists negotiate potholes on a busy road in Bekasi, West Java, in this Feb
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Bumpy ride: Motorists negotiate potholes on a busy road in Bekasi, West Java, in this Feb. 21 photo. The local administration has allocated Rp 10 trillion to repair damaged roads throughout the industrial region.(Antara/Hafidz Mubarak) (Antara/Hafidz Mubarak)
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span class="inline inline-center">Bumpy ride: Motorists negotiate potholes on a busy road in Bekasi, West Java, in this Feb. 21 photo. The local administration has allocated Rp 10 trillion to repair damaged roads throughout the industrial region. (Antara/Hafidz Mubarak)
The daughter of a man who died in an accident after his motorcycle hit a pothole in Bekasi has taken a stand against the Bekasi municipality and West Java province, demanding compensation and a public apology for her father's death.
Sulastri Maeda Yoppy, with help from her lawyer Muhammad Isnur of Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), sued West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan, Bekasi Mayor Rahmat Effendi, the West Java Road Agency head and the Bekasi Transportation Agency head.
Isnur said on Friday the suit had been filed with the Bekasi District Court on Thursday.
On Feb. 8 last year, Sulastri's father, Ponti Kadron Nainggolan, left home at dusk, riding his motorcycle to buy some construction materials.
However, when he was passing through Jl. Raya Siliwangi in Bantar Gebang, Bekasi, West Java, he hit a large pothole, which caused him to lose control of his motorcycle. He was thrown into the opposite lane and hit by a truck.
Ponti suffered serious injures and was admitted to Thamrin Hospital in Cileungsi, West Java, before the doctor pronounced him dead.
Sulastri said Thursday, as quoted by tribunnews.com, that the road was full of potholes did not have a divider in the middle of the road and had minimal lighting.
Isnur said the West Java governor and West Java Road Agency head had a duty to the general public, including Ponti, to maintain the roads and repair damaged areas in their jurisdiction.
'We also included the Bekasi City mayor and Transportation Agency head in the lawsuit because they did not do their job to put up damaged road signs in that area,' Isnur told The Jakarta Post.
Sulastri used Article 24 of the Traffic Law, which stipulates that state officials have to repair a damaged road that could cause an accident as soon as possible.
The civil suit also stated that Article 238 of the law stipulated that the government must allocate funds to prevent and mitigate traffic accidents.
In her lawsuit, Sulastri is seeking Rp 809 million (US$62,382) in compensation from the defendants, a public apology broadcast through a number of media outlets, immediate repairs to the section of the road where the accident occurred, which she said was still damaged even a year after her father's fatal accident.
Commenting on the lawsuit, Rahmat Effendi said he had asked the West Java administration to repair the road because it was not his responsibility.
Nelson Nikodemus Simamora, another lawyer from LBH Jakarta, said Ponti had not been the first motorist to get into an accident because of the potholes on that road. LBH Jakarta had records that showed between January and October last year there were 51 traffic accidents in that same place that claimed six lives.
'The government must be aware that they have a duty to protect and serve their citizens and this lawsuit is one attempt to help them realize that,' Nelson said.
Nelson said that previously LBH Jakarta had represented citizens and won civil cases against the government or local administrations.
