AntaraMorotai, Maluku Utara (ANTARA) - Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Wiranto, along with his entourage, conducted a working visit to Morotai Island, North Maluku, to launch the Border Integrated Development Movement (Gerbangdutas) in 2019 on the yard of the Morotai Island District Office on Monday.
"With the launch of Gerbangdutas, it will be a new phase that the people on Morotai Island need to be grateful for because Gerbangdutas is the third Nawacita (nine key development programs) built by President Joko Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla—namely building infrastructure with the goal of equitable distribution of development in the periphery and the strengthening of the border area," said Wiranto.
Wiranto stated that there were three strategic values of border development, according to Wiranto, namely security, justice and welfare issues, one of which was that all incoming threats had to be detained outside, so we had to strengthen the border area and this was what the president did.
Concerning security, the border areas have been built, so that community members will become more alert toward various threats, because threats will always exist and change from time to time.
"In the past, the threat was in the form of a military attack such as other countries attacking our country, but now, such threats no longer exist, but there are threats even in our daily lives such as drugs, terrorism, radicalism, illegal fishing, illegal logging and various other kinds; this is what we must avoid," he said.
He stated that as for strategic justice and prosperity for the entire Indonesian nation, both in the city and on the periphery, the welfare would be felt equally.
"I have a record of the previous evaluations of the Gerbangdutas that began from 2015 to 2018. They are gradually able to overcome the isolation and underdevelopment of border areas through the fulfillment of basic social services, including transportation, electricity, education and health," he said.
Morotai Island, as the border area with the Philippines and as an important defense point of the Allies in World War II in the Pacific, is at the forefront of the frame of the NKRI (Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia), and the area of 2,330 square kilometers of Morotai is perfect as an area of focus for President Joko Widodo.
Translator: Eliswan Azly
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
