Everyone who lives in or visits Jakarta knows that it's a shithole. Its shortcomings need no itemising here, but I can list the shortcomings of those in City Hall.
Back in October 2004 the Jakarta Post carried profiles of the 75 newly elected city councillors, who gained their sinecures based on the numbers of votes cast for the various political parties they belonged to. They were not directly elected to represent the electorate but the interests of those political parties: Golkar (only 6 councillors but with the Speaker as an 'extra'), PKS (19, inc. a Deputy Speaker), P-Dem (16, inc. a Deputy Speaker), PDI-P (11, inc. a Deputy Speaker), PPP (7), PAN (6), PDS (4), PKB (4), PBR (2).
The priorities of the councillors were given in the following order:
Corruption 22
Economy 16
Transport and Traffic 15
Education 14
Welfare/Women 13
Environment 12
Housing 11
Security and law 7
Waste Disposal 6
(NB. Some councillors suggested that they had more than one issue they wanted to focus on.)
Can anyone say that the current regime has improved life here?
Please comment below.
The capital loses as capital gains
Are there new investors?
Maybe. During the period January - November 2006, Approved Domestic and Foreign Direct Investment was about Rp.157.5 trillion and US$13.9 billion, an increase of 244.5% and 18.8% respectively from the same period last year.
New shopping malls, which occupy land that Jakartans could otherwise benefit from, are not fully occupied. Jakarta occupancies decreased to 92.1%. It appears that strata title kiosk developments are reaching saturation point.
(Great pics.)
Is the environment better?
The worst floods, ever, blamed on blatant development of land reserved as ‘greenbelts’ to absorb rainwater.
Is the waste better disposed of?
Landfill site - full amid strong street rumours of City Hall malfeance blocking the development of major recycling initiatives.
(Great pics.)
Is there less traffic, better transport?
The short answer is no. In spite of the limited success of the Busway with its special bus lanes, some 300 new cars enter Jakarta's roads every day.
Is there less corruption?
Is the sea dry?
Need I go on?
Foke off limits?
The election of incumbent Governor Sooty and his new partner, Deputy Governor Fauzi Bowo five years ago was by 47 of the 85 councillors and it was not universally acclaimed. It was greeted with street clashes not least because because no-one wanted to understand why the then President Megashoppa supported his candidature. After all, on July 27th 1996, when he was Suharto's military commander of the city, Sutiyoso was responsible for the trashing of the HQ of Mega's political party, PDI-P. There were several deaths and many remain unaccounted for. But Mega has always been a Suhartoist, rather than a people's president, so this minor skirmish can safely be overlooked.
In the aftermath of Jakarta's floods earlier this year, I had this to say about the self-serving Governor Sooty, and the self-seeking Deputy Governor Fauzi Bowo.
Governor Sooty has been quick to say that the floods are a natural phenomenon. Most of us would disagree and say that it's the rain that is natural. Still, I suppose it's also natural that his deputy, Fauzi Bowo, would agree and then offer the excuse that there was nothing that could have been done to prevent it because "Floods happen everywhere in the world."
This genius is standing in the city's first direct election for the governorship. I don't have the vote, but with flippant comments like that you can be sure that he will not be seen for much longer in City Hall. There's a word in English that describes him perfectly; it rhymes with 'banker'.
Here's another quote to indicate his leadership qualities: “We have not been invited to the talks (prior to the establishment of the consortium), so we don't know where the subway will be built.”
So, a major project to develop a mass public transport system in the capital city is initiated without the involvement of City Hall? Really?
Fauwi BozoWhat I am going to say here is probably going to make this site a target for hackers. Yes, I'm going to say that in my humble opinion, the election of the businessman's friend pictured above will be a further unmitigated disaster for Jakartans. He has neither said nor done anything to convince the populace of his capabilities.
That his face is disfiguring hectares of wall space throughout the city is no doubt due to the over-zealousness of his supporters, the Fauzi Bowo Defence Team. You see, there is an election to be held in Jakarta this coming August, a historic election in that for the first time it is a 'direct' election. Yep, Jakartans supposedly get to say who is going to ruin their lives for the next five years, until 2012.
Of course, this isn't true, the direct election bit I mean. After all, the only candidates must be nominated by political parties or coalitions thereof, who reached the 'threshold' of 15% of the votes recorded in the last election. Given that all the parties have fed at the City Hall trough for the past five years, in spite of their supposed good intentions outlined above, it is only natural that they want the good life to continue.
In criticising the political parties and Bozo, I am laying myself open to castigation by his supporters who have already got uptight and undemocratic in their demands that critical blogs be shut down.
That presumptiveness alone is worth a highly critical post. That Bowo has merely clung to the coat tails of Big Brother Sooty and is now demonstrably proving himself to be a jerk is more than adequate grounds for me to suggest that Jakarta's electors tell him to Foke Off.
