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‘The Jakarta Post’ helps raise funds to support those worst hit by COVID-19
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Tjitra & Associates managing director Hora Tjitra (left), The Jakarta Post Foundation chairman Bambang Trisno Sejati (second left), Pertamina Foundation operation director Unggul Putranto (second right) and The Jakarta Post Foundation program director Damar Harsanto supervise the distribution of donations at The Jakarta Post office in Jakarta on Wednesday. (JP/Donny Fernando)
T
he Jakarta Post, through its philanthropic arm The Jakarta Post Foundation, is collaborating with the Pertamina Foundation and Tjitra & Associates to raise funds to support those affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
The first batch of donations was given on Wednesday to the families of gravediggers who work at several public cemeteries in Jakarta that have been designated as burial sites for COVID-19 victims.
“The gravediggers are among the forgotten heroes during this pandemic,” The Jakarta Post Foundation chairman Bambang Trisno Sejati said on Wednesday.
Since early March, gravediggers have worked long hours to prepare the final resting places for bodies that must be buried in accordance with COVID-19 protocols.
From March 5 to April 24, 1,666 burials followed these protocols, according to the Jakarta administration’s records.
Many believe the COVID-19 death toll has been underreported, as the administration recorded 4,400 burials in March, a 40 percent increase from February.
“The gravediggers have to deal with the pressures of an extra workload, economic hardship and working in a high risk job. Certainly, they are in dire need of our support,” Pertamina Foundation operation director Unggul Putranto said.
Read also: Jakarta's curve flattened? Experts question government's claim
Dozens of gravediggers at the Tegal Alur public cemetery in West Jakarta and Pondok Ranggon public cemetery in East Jakarta received packages of food and protective health gear on Wednesday.
Jakarta has been the epicenter of the outbreak in Indonesia, with the highest number of positive cases across the archipelago.
Tjitra & Associates managing director Hora Tjitra said donations would also be collected through a series of webinars that would be held for corporate clients over the next three months.
“Through these webinars, which focus on how companies and staffers can adapt to the post-COVID-19 environment, we encourage companies to take part in the initiative, as all the money raised will go to support COVID-19 relief efforts,” Hora said.
“We will evaluate on a regular basis which groups to give our donations to,” he added.
According to Hora, bigger relief efforts would be needed in the near future to help those most impacted by the pandemic. (dmr)
