Ketua Veteran Menangis Ingat Rekannya Ada yang Keliling Jual Kalender Demi Sambung Hidup

Wajah Alaudin seketika memerah, air matanya pun menetes ketika ditanya kehidupan para veteran di Sumatera Utara. Ia tertunduk seraya menghela napas dan mengaku sedih melihat kondisi teman-temannya saat ini.

 

"Masih banyak yang susah. Mereka rata-rata tidak punya rumah. Nyewa-nyewa saja mereka. Itu pun ada yang terusir, karena tidak sanggup membayar biaya sewa," tutur Ketua Legiun Veteran Republik Indonesia Sumut tersebut di kediamannya, Rabu (16/8).

Ia menceritakan, para veteran banyak yang hidupnya tidak layak. Ada yang menumpang hidup kepada orang lain, dan ada yang hidup sebatang kara. Padahal semasa muda, para veteran sudah berjuang mati-matian demi kemerdekaan bangsa ini.

"Kami para veteran ini tidak punya apapun, lantaran kami dahulu tidak mencari harta. Kami meninggalkan semua kehidupan kami. Bahkan, kami banyak yang kehilangan harta demi memperjuangkan bangsa ini," katanya.

Berita Pasti Saat berecerita, ia juga terisak ketika terkenang teman-temannya yang terpaksa mengemis dan berkeliling menjajakan kalender demi menyambung hidup. Kejadian tersebut, ia sebut, benar-benar membuat benaknya serasa tersayat.

"Jangan sampai ada lagi yang mengemis atau berjualan kalender seperti dulu. Sekarang, kami sudah tidak begitu lagi memang. Pemerintah sudah memberi bantuan Rp 1,5 jutaan setiap bulan, tapi itu masih sangat-sangat tidak cukup," ujarnya.

Alaudin menuturkan, kehidupan keluarga veteran di Sumut juga banyak yang melarat, lantaran orangtuanya lebih mendahulukan negara daripada keluarga. Ia mencotohkan, Kapten Hamid yang gugur dan meninggalkan enam anak dan seorang istri.

"Bagaimana coba hidup keluarga yang begini. Tentu susah, pendidikan anaknya pasti tidak terurus. Untuk cukup-cukup makan saja, saya rasa susah dipenuhi seorang istri untuk menghidupi enam anak. Namun, perhatian pemerintah untuk hal begini sangat minim," ujarnya.

Ia menambahkan, teman-temannya semasa berjuang banyak yang ingin tinggal di panti jompo. Pasalnya, mereka tidak punya siapa-siapa lagi.

"Saya punya panti jompo, yang di situ ada 12 orang. Teman-teman veteran banyak yang meminta tinggal di panti jompo itu, karena mereka sudah tidak punya siapa-siapa lagi. Betapa sedih dan kekuranganya hidup mereka," katanya.

Ia menceritakan, sebenarnya para veteran, juga ingin terlibat mengisi kemerdekaan dengan mewariskan nilai-nilai perjuangan, mewariskan semangat tanpa pamrih dan menceritakan perjuangan mereka kepada anak-anak muda. Namun, saat mereka hendak berpartisipasi selalu terkendala biaya.

"Kami mau buat kegiatan menyalurkan semangat berjuang untuk negara ini. Apalagi saat ini, sudah banyak yang lupa perjuangan para pejuang dulu. Kami mau ke sekolah-sekolah dan ketemu anak-anak muda. Kami mencoba meminta bantuan dana dari Pemerintah Sumut, tapi nggak pernah ada," katanya.

Ia bercerita, sudah hampir tiga tahun mereka tidak pernah mendapat bantuan apapun dari pemerintah daerah, dan selama tiga tahun tersebut mereka terpaksa mengurungkan niat berkegiatan.

"Asal kami minta dibantu kegiatan, pemerintah daerah selalu bilang kami tidak bisa mendapat bantuan dari pemerintah daerah, lantaran kasus yang menimpa gubernur sebelumnya, sehingga dana bansos bermasalah.

Padahal pada UU Nomor 15 Tahun 2012 Pasal 19, pemerintah daerah mempunyai kewajiban membantu, " ujarnya.

Pun demikian, ia mengatakan, ada daerah-daerah yang memerhatikan nasib para veteran, seperti di Batubara dan Binjai. Ada juga beberapa perusahaan yang mau membantu mereka, seperti Inalum, yang merehab rumah veteran.

"Kalau di Sumut cuma Binjai dan Batubara yang masih peduli. Kalau yang tidak peduli banyak. Medanlah contohnya. Perusahaan ada juga yang peduli. Cuma berapalah kami yang bisa dibantu perusahaan," ujarnya.

Ia mengapumkan harapan, kiranya pada Hari Ulang Tahun Ke-72 Bangsa Indonesia, pemerintah semakin memerhatikan nasib para veteran. Ia juga berharap niat para veteran turut mengisi kemerdekaan dengan cara mewarisakan nilai-nilai perjuangan kepada generasi muda difasilitasi pemerintah.

5 Consequences of Driving without Car Insurance Do you own a car? Great! Does your car also have a valid motor insurance cover on it? Owning a car, while earlier classified as being a luxury, has now moved down to being a comfort. In fact, in metros, a car has almost become a necessity due to long-distance commutes. More and more of us are, therefore, buying a car. But are we also buying the mandatory car insurance policy? Every car which is to ply on Indian roads should have a valid car insurance cover, states the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. When you buy a new car, the choice of buying an insurance policy is, thankfully, taken out of your hands. The on-road price of the car is inclusive of the insurance premium for your car insurance policy. The problems arise when the policy expires after a year. Car insurance plans are usually issued for one year after which they should be renewed. If you do not renew it, you are driving a car without car insurance. If numbers are any indication, a study by New India Assurance revealed that about 70% of vehicles on Indian roads are without insurance. Is your car one among them? If yes, beware. Here are 5 consequences if you drive your car without having a valid Car Insurance policy: Be prepared to pay heavy fines Earlier, the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 governed the road safety and traffic rules. Recently, the Government passed the Road Transport and Safety Bill 2014 to replace the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Among other changes, the Bill penalizes you heavily if you are caught driving without having a valid insurance cover. As per the amendments, you would have to part with a whopping Rs.25, 000 for a light motor vehicles or Rs.75, 000 for other motor vehicles as a fine for driving without insurance. A huge fine, isn’t it? Pay losses for damages caused to third party or property In an accident, if you unintentionally harm any person or surrounding property, you are liable to pay the loss incurred. This is called third party liability. Your car insurance mandatorily covers this third party liability and spares you the loss incurred. In the absence of a valid insurance cover, you would have to bear the losses incurred. If the person dies, your liability would be very high. Read more Is third party car worth buying? Pay losses for own damage While you have to compulsorily pay losses caused to a third party, what about your losses. In an accident even your vehicle suffers damage. The costs of repairs for such damage are borne by your comprehensive car insurance policy. Without insurance, the onus of paying for the repairs is on you. With the high cost associated with the repairs of your car, a financial strain is inevitable. Read more about All you need to know about car insurance Face legal complications Besides the financial loss suffered in an accident which causes damage to a third party and/or self, you would also be entangled in legal complications if your car is found without a valid insurance cover. You would be penalized, get a challan and might even be imprisoned. Loss of No Claim Bonus If your car insurance expires and you do not renew it, besides the penalties and fines, you also lose the No Claim Bonus which you accumulated in your existing policy. Car insurance plans allow a discount in subsequent year’s premiums if there is no claim in any current year. This discount increases every year and saves your premium outgo. If you let your car insurance policy lapse, you lose the accumulated NCB and end up paying a higher premium when the policy is consequently renewed. A car insurance policy is legally mandatory and not having one results in serious consequences (as mentioned above). While a third party liability cover is mandatory, a comprehensive policy is better. The former pays only for the damages caused to any third party but the latter also covers damages incurred by you and your car. The premium for a comprehensive policy is slightly higher because of higher coverage. For instance, the premium payable for a Maruti Ritz car registered in 2012 having a capacity of 1197cc would have a third party premium of Rs.2237 and a comprehensive premium of Rs.4200 (approximately). With a slight increase in the premium you can avail a higher coverage option which covers for your damages too. Since car repairs are expensive, a comprehensive policy makes more sense even if the premiums are a little high. So do not fall a victim to these consequences and buy an insurance policy for your car today.