As the Jakarta administration warms to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s proposal that the capital be expanded to include surrounding areas, a presidential advisor said the Greater Jakarta concept was the most feasible solution to the city’s woes.
Yudhoyono advisor Velix Wanggai said the central government was seriously contemplating the Greater Jakarta concept, whereby Jakarta would remain the nation’s capital but government centers would be relocated elsewhere.
“There would be a new spatial management. We won’t discuss administrative boundaries, only the issue of spatial functions, and this will involve Jakarta, Banten and West Java and their spatial management,” Velix said Sunday.
He added that there was a likelihood that the expansion of Jakarta would reach cities such as Purwakarta, Karawang and Sukabumi.
Velix also dismissed speculation that the center of government would move to Cikeas, where Yudhoyono’s private residence is located.
He said the seat of government would not be relocated further than 400 kilometers from Jakarta.
Last week, the city administration said it supported the proposal to expand Jakarta to include neighboring areas.
“Jakarta is already overloaded,” Deputy Governor Prijanto said.
He added that the city administration was ready to hold discussions with any parties about the proposal.
“We will officially discuss the concept as soon as possible. We have not done so because it was only raised a few days ago,” Prijanto was quoted as saying by Antara news agency.
The City Council has also thrown its weight behind the proposal.
Council deputy speaker Triwisaksana of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) called the concept practical.
“The concept is more easily implemented [than other proposals]. It would also be more cost-effective than moving the capital elsewhere,” he said.
Politicians from smaller parties, however, objected to the proposal.
Mohammad Sanusi of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) said the city administration should stick with the old concept of a Greater Jakarta as formulated by Soeharto’s New Order regime.
“We don’t need new ideas. It would be better for us to try to implement the old concept of a Greater Jakarta, Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, Bekasi and Cianjur [Jabodetabekjur] which already has a solid legal basis,” he said.
Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) rector Prof. Akhmaloka, the first specialist to discuss the idea with Yudhoyono, said the Greater Jakarta concept could only be implemented after 2015.
He said Yudhoyono expected that the first preliminary work on the proposal could only be conducted
in 2015.
Akhmaloka said ITB was currently working on the details of how to translate the proposal into action.
“We have a number of experts currently reviewing the concept, and can hopefully give recommendations on the necessary logistics,” he was quoted as saying by news portal detik.com.
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