M

ost Jakartans seem to live their lives unaware that the maximum punishment for littering, as stipulated in the public order bylaw, is 60 days imprisonment and a Rp 2 million (US$210) fine.

It is no wonder, then, that sanitation will likely be an ever-lasting problem for the capital city.
The existing law is not effective and cannot be policed Although garbage bins are available in some public areas, most people still throw their rubbish anywhere.

With the onset of the rainy season the city administration is busy picking the city clean of trash.

Jakartans are used to see excavators mobilized in rivers or dams, collecting tons of rubbish.

Dozens of people are hired to clean drainage ditches choked with waste.

Dozens of trucks stand by in areas frequented by flooding to remove garbage from overflowing rivers.

Rubbish seems to be a major cause of floods in the city.  

The city health agency tallies rubbish production at 6,000 tons per day, 300 tons of which is in the rivers.

Only 5,500 tons of garbage is trucked to Bantargebang dumpsite per day.  

The rest is swept into piles that may one day grow large enough to consume the city.

I believe most Jakartans realize the danger. Yet, ignorance lets them believe that it’s the responsibility of the city administration.

When floods hit the city, lower class people living along the Ciliwung river are singled out to blame for the annual disaster.

It could be partly true. These people do rely on the river for day to day life. Passing the river you can see people washing vegetables and rice, taking a pail of drinking water or disposing of their household garbage.

But don’t for a second think that only uneducated people have this reckless attitude.

Middle to high-class people are just as guilty of ignoring littering laws.

Perhaps those who ever lived overseas or frequently visit neighboring countries like Singapore to do the same thing.  They obey the local regulation in other countries, but not in their own.   

People driving, or being driven around in, luxurious cars do not automatically adopt an attitude as elegant as their car. They still  throw rubbish out the windows of their expensive cars.      

The attitudes of some public transport passengers also need to be changed.

Some buy snacks to eat on board, and when they are finished the snacks paper or plastic wrapper is casually tossed under the seat.

Sadly, if one does it, others will too, as if the attitude is normal.     

If a city administration official decides to inspect the cleanliness of the bus, regardless how unlikely it is, will they blame the bus company that doesn’t provide rubbish bins on board? Who is more at fault?  

Food street vendors and buyers also contribute to the piles of rubbish across the city.

The buyer will casually toss a used napkin under their table or chair.

The vendor will chuck leftover  food into the ditch and when the rainy season comes, the rubbish will clog the drain causing it to flood.   

It is not hard to hold onto our rubbish until we find the nearest garbage bin or even until we get home.

Our city is home to all of us, let’s keep the city clean from rubbish.

City administrators should clean the rubbish from the river and  drainage ditches all year round.
Don’t pretend to have an amnesia when the rainy season and floods have passed.

Let’s change our attitude and better our city this year.