BEKASI (June 5, 2020) - To be able to continue receiving conditional assistance of the Family Hope Program (PKH) from the government, there are things that must be fulfilled as the obligations of the beneficiaries. Such as Nenek Manah (75), an elderly recipient of PKH assistance from Bekasi City has done, she must fulfill the obligation to check her health regularly.

The woman who lives in Sepanjang Jaya Village, Rawa Lumbu District, Bekasi City, together with her two children and grandchildren, must routinely have their health checked at the local Elderly Integrated Healthcare Center and report the results to PKH facilitators.

Her second child, Maryani, on behalf of her mother, said her mother was obliged to do it. "Every month, my mother has special weighing for the elderly at the Integrated Healthcare Center, and it is my mother's obligation to report the PKH," she said accompanying Grandma Manah.

While showing her mother's Integrated Healthcare Center notebook, Maryani explained the contents of the book. There the data on the visit concerned to the Elderly Integrated Healthcare Centeris recorded, from body weight to blood pressure.

Grandma Manah has been registered as a recipient of PKH assistance for the elderly category since January 2020. Maryani also acted as guardian for the assistance her mother received because her eyesight and hearing had been impaired since four years ago.

Maryani, who is the backbone of this family, said that her mother had to do in PKH was also her obligation. This has a positive psychological impact on him and the mother. He feels that his relationship has become closer to his mother.

"Closer to mother, more affectionate, pay more attention to the health and needs of the mother," she said.

 

PKH Social Assistance Disburses Every Month

Meanwhile, in the context of handling COVID-19, the government through the Ministry of Social Affairs has changed the PKH social assistance disbursement policy (bansos) from three months to every month. The policy was implemented in April, after period I (January) and period II (March) were completed.

Until now, at least Maryani has received PKH assistance for her mother four times. "First, I received 600 thousand in January for mothers. Then, March got 600 thousand, then April got 200 thousand, and this May received another 200 thousand, "she explained.

 

When asked to choose between the previous policies and what the government is implementing today, representing his mother, he could not decide. According to her, it all depends on the level of need.

"Yes, if you look at the nominal, it is better to get in the slingshot, get bigger, but for the needs of each month, it's actually the same, if every month, thank God, if you are in a three-month slingshot, thank God, bigger means you get," said this veiled woman. .

She added, PKH social assistance, for her, helps provide additional savings for various urgent needs of her mother. "Alhamdulillah, it was very helpful when I got PKH, yes, lighten the burden a little, there is a little savings for my mother one day if she is sick or something," he said.

As is known, according to President Joko Widodo's direction, the government has prepared a social safety net for underprivileged Indonesian families, in order to maintain their purchasing power to meet basic needs. #KemensosHadir through PKH to protect underprivileged families from COVID-19. Through PKH, the government provides protection at the same time in the fields of economy, health, education and social welfare.

Responding to this pandemic situation, the government also increased the PKH social assistance budget by 25 percent. PKH social assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic has been adjusted for each component, namely pregnant women and children aged 0-6 years to IDR 250 .000 per month, elementary school children to IDR 75.000 per month, junior high school children to IDR 125.000 per month, Senior high school children are Rp. 166.000 per month, and people with severe disabilities and elderly people 70 years and over are Rp. 200.000 per month, so the total PKH budget is IDR 37.4 trillion.

The government also increased the number of beneficiaries to 10 million KPM from 9.2 million KPM. This addition refers to Integrated Social Welfare Data (DTKS) which is managed by the Ministry of Social Affairs Data and Information Center (Pusdatin) and is sourced from data updated by every local government in Indonesia.