The provincial government lost Rp5 trillion due to COVID-19Cirebon, W Java (ANTARA) - West Java lost Rp5 trillion of funding for infrastructure development since the COVID-19 pandemic struck two years back, Governor M. Ridwan Kamil stated.
"The provincial government lost Rp5 trillion due to COVID-19," Kamil noted in Cirebon, West Java on Friday while replying to a question on damaged roads in the region.
Consequently, several infrastructure projects were put on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic, so several sections of roads in the province remained in a damaged state, the governor pointed out.
The pandemic has prompted the provincial government to relocate funding, originally planned for road repair work in the province, to handle COVID-19 cases, he stated.
"A major chunk of the Rp5 trillion was originally earmarked for repairing roads. If COVID-19 would not have hit, then all the roads would have been smooth," he stated.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the provincial government has focused on saving the lives of residents from the coronavirus disease, he remarked.
Hopes are pinned high on all infrastructure projects resuming and the pandemic soon turning into endemic in 2022, he noted.
"I do apologize. InsyaAllah (God willing), (the damaged roads) will be repaired in 2022 when life returns to normal," he stated.
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Translator: Khaerul Izan, Suharto
Editor: Sri Haryati
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