The House of Representatives Urges the Government to Investigate the Triggers of the Disaster in Sumatra

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The DPR urges the government to investigate the causes of the flooding and landslides in Aceh, West Sumatra, and North Sumatra that have resulted in 723 fatalities. This disaster event is also considered to further highlight the weaknesses in prevention and disaster response scenarios.

The Vice Chairman of Commission V of the DPR from the National Awakening Party (PKB) Syaiful Huda, when met at the Parliament Complex in Jakarta on Tuesday (2/12/2025), expressed his concern over the disasters of flooding and landslides in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra at the end of November 2025.

According to him, the disaster indicates that Indonesia has once again failed to anticipate medium and large-scale hydrometeorological events that occur every year.

"This certainly serves as a note on how we should prepare a more comprehensive disaster response scenario, especially the early warning system from BMKG," said Huda.

He also urged for an investigation into the causes of the disaster in northern Sumatra, whether it was solely due to ecological issues or extreme weather.

"This is important so that in the future we can learn from it and anticipate and minimize the potential for major disasters in the future," he said.

Furthermore, Huda urged the government to elevate the disaster status in the northern part of Sumatra to a national disaster. He assessed that the five indicators for declaring a national disaster, including the scope of the affected area, the number of victims, the level of damage to infrastructure, property losses, and socio-economic impacts, have all been met.

"Five indicators of a national disaster have been met. The flash floods in West Sumatra, North Sumatra, and Aceh are deemed worthy of being declared a national disaster," emphasized Huda.

He believes that the declaration of a national disaster status is important to facilitate the handling of the impacts of flash floods and landslides in Sumatra. With this status, the central government through the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) can deploy national resources, ranging from funds, logistics, SAR personnel, to volunteers, as well as strengthen coordination among agencies and ministries.

"Declaring this national disaster will also facilitate coordination in the emergency response, rehabilitation, and reconstruction processes," he said.

In several analyses by the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), Huda continued, extreme weather will still occur in the near future. Therefore, the public must remain vigilant to prevent the recurrence of hydrometeorological disasters.

"We encourage the implementation of weather modification in areas prone to landslides. This step is important to anticipate and minimize large-scale disasters," he stated.

A member of Commission V of the DPR from the Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) faction, Yanuar Arif Wibowo, also believes that the government needs to make serious improvements in disaster mitigation policies following a series of natural disasters occurring in various regions of Indonesia.

"Recurring disaster events should serve as an alarm for the government to strengthen preparedness, public communication, and comprehensive evaluation of environmental governance," he emphasized.

Yanuar stated that Indonesia's geographical condition, which is located in a disaster-prone area, should be addressed with well-prepared and sustainable mitigation instruments. "Indonesia exists above an extraordinary disaster potential. Therefore, mitigation tools must be prepared from the outset," he said.

He added that, unlike wars which can still be predicted and prepared for, natural disasters can occur at any time. Therefore, the government is obligated to anticipate them with science-based policies and adequate technical preparedness.

Yanuar stated that during six months of intensive discussions with BMKG, the disaster mapping has actually been available. However, its implementation in the field is still far from adequate. He highlighted the situation in Sumatra, which has once again been struck by a major disaster, resulting in many casualties.

He urged the government to boldly make significant investments in mitigation, including readiness of equipment, monitoring technology, and strengthening the capacity of local governments. According to him, budget constraints often hinder optimal disaster management.

"That is why several regional heads are calling for this to be declared a national disaster. So that a national resolution can be brought forth, and rehabilitation can be carried out quickly," he said.

Members of the Disaster Oversight Team (Timwas) of the DPR from the PKS faction, Reni Astuti, also urged the government to promptly declare the events in Sumatra as a national disaster. The high number of victims and the extensive affected areas are considered to require special handling. Access to several locations remains very difficult, with some points still completely isolated.

"The government needs to take extraordinary measures for this extraordinary situation. By declaring a national disaster status, all handling potentials, both human resources and logistics, can be maximized," he stated.

Reni assesses that the scale of the disaster has now exceeded the capacity of local governments. This is evident from the statements of three regents in Aceh, namely the Regent of East Aceh Iskandar Usman Al-Farlaky, the Regent of South Aceh Mirwan MS, and the Regent of Central Aceh Haili Yoga, who expressed their overwhelm in dealing with the impacts of the disaster. They conveyed that the damage, the number of victims, and the difficulty of evacuation access cannot be managed solely with local resources.

"The statements of the three regents serve as an alarm that this is no longer a category of ordinary disaster. The capacity of the regions is insufficient and national intervention is needed," said Reni.