Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has taken a stand in response to Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's plan to move the capital city outside Java. Anies said leaving Jakarta won't solve the city's traffic congestion dilemma. Other experts have also responded to the proposal with skepticism.
According to The Jakarta Post, Anies said even if the capital city is moved away from Jakarta, it won't help ease the city from overcrowded communities and congested streets. "Traffic jams will still occur in Jakarta because the contributors to congestion are household and private sector activities, not government activities," he said.
Anies further explained that government vehicles only account for 141,000 of Jakarta's total 17 million registered autos. He said traffic challenges in the capital city will be retained despite Jokowi's goodwill of easing the problem.
In terms of overcrowding, Anies noted that in Jakarta's 10 million population count, only nine percent are civil servants, further solidifying his stance that moving the capital city won't make a huge difference early on.
Multiple outlets reported that Jakarta is sinking and the government sensed the urgency to ease the city of its problems. ABC News noted that Jakarta is the country's center of the economy. It is also the ultimate metro for educational institutions.
Earlier this year, Jokowi pointed out that Jakarta's traffic jams are costing Indonesia an estimated $4 million as these cause low productivity, increased health issues, and a huge waste of fuel.
Analysts said another factor that has contributed largely to Jakarta's sinking levels is lax regulations on groundwater extraction units. River water is too dangerous for drinking and the national water provider only meets around 35 percent of the city's annual needs.
Following Jokowi's announcement of his plans to move to a new capital city, opposition came up early on. Director of the Rujak Centre for Urban Studies, Elisa Sutanudjaja, told The Guardian that the initiative has been heard of multiple times in the past. "It's just really distracting," she said.
Palangkaraya in Kalimantan Province has been mentioned as a potential site but the co-founder of the School of Democratic Economics, Hendro Sangkoyo, pointed out that it is "absurd" to transfer the capital city of Indonesia to an area that already has ecological problems.
Jokowi's administration has yet to make a final announcement about the location but before then, the proposal has yet to pass the House. Other analysts said it may take a decade or so before the capital city is completely moved out of Jakarta.
