The Surabaya municipal administration has aired its objection to the central government's plan to accelerate development of areas around the Suramadu Bridge.
The acceleration plan was outlined in Presidential Decree No. 27/2008 on the formation of the Agency for the Accelerated Development of the Suramadu Bridge Area (BPPWS).
According to assistant of development administration affairs at the Surabaya municipality Muklas Udin, the presidential decree is not in line with Law No.32/2004 on the regional administration or Presidential Regulation No. 38/2007 on building permits. "We demand the government revise the decree," he said on Wednesday.
According to Muklas, the presidential regulation grants all authority related to the manage-ment of the 1,800-hectare area around areas of the Suramadu Bridge to the municipality and provincial administrations.
The problem is that 600 hectares falls on Madura's side, 600 hectares is on Surabaya's side and 600 hectares in on East Surabaya's side, meaning it would be unfavorable for the municipality and it residents if it is not adjusted with laws and regulations.
He said that clearing the 600 hectare area on the Surabaya side would deprive hundreds of thousands of residents still living in the area of their homes and means of income, because the majority of them are traditional fishermen.
A source at the Surabaya municipality disclosed efforts to lower the price of land around the Suramadu Bridge systematically, saying that the government had intentionally delayed a number of projects in the area in order to hold back development so that land could be acquired cheaply.
Head of the Community Reliance Institute in Tanah Kali Kedinding subdistrict, Kenjeran district, Suwandono, concurred, saying residents often faced difficulties when applying for land certificates or other licenses, such as land use and building permits.
Residents also believe that only 200 hectares of the area has been included in the business district offered to investors, and not the initially planned 600.
Around 68 hectares of land in the Kenjeran district, specifically in the subdistricts of Kali Kedinding, Tambak Rejo and Kedung Cowek are currently dominated by investors.
Assistant of the Economic and Development Affairs office at the East Java provincial administration Khoirul Djaelani verified the planned clearance of 600 hectares in East Surabaya, but denied it would evict area residents. "Coordination is more proper, but not eviction," he said.
According to him, the BPPWS, which will manage the bridge, has not yet been established and its concept has not yet been completed. "We don't know what it would look like later, but we back each regency's aspiration to accomplish the project," he said.
Meanwhile, East Java Governor Soekarwo denied that the BPPWS, which would manage the area around the bridge, had been established.
"The establishment of the agency has not been completed. It's still unclear the authority of the agency," Soekarwo said on Wednesday, as quoted by Antara.
