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em>Jakarta Governor Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo and his deputy Basuki '€œAhok'€ Tjahaja Purnama were sworn in on Oct. 15 last year. Jokowi recently talked with The Jakarta Post'€™s Sita W. Dewi and Kornelius Purba about the many issues and problems the city currently faces. The following are excerpts from the discussion:

Question: Have you missed any of the targets that you set for the first 12 months of your administration?

Answer: Let'€™s go back to early October and November [last year]. In November we launched the Jakarta Health Card. It has been a year since the cards were first issued and the situation has returned to normal. We predicted that the number of patients would surge within the first four or five months because sick people, who had previously neglected their illnesses, would flock to hospitals. I think this was a healthcare revolution. We covered not only basic medical treatment, but we also covered surgery and dialysis.

Did the medical expenses exceed the budget ceiling?

No, they didn'€™t. If they had, the Health Agency would have said something. I think this was a political decision that needed be taken immediately if we wanted the residents to have healthcare. However, I also think that preventive measures are important '€” how we'€™re improving the environment, nutrition and promoting healthy food. That was the target, and that was why I initiated the Kampung Deret [row of villages] program. The program is not merely about infrastructure. Good environmental management, namely proper septic tanks, drainage and so on, will create a healthy lifestyle. Those are the preventive measures. Then there'€™s the Jakarta Smart Card. Those are basic needs: a city'€™s foundations are its education and health [programs].

Were they new to the city?

We are not only talking about free education. We are building the system to ensure that the people benefit from it. Previously, who got the facilities? Without an appropriate system, how can we ensure that the people who deserve it will get it? I can give you a list of the recipients of the Jakarta Smart Card. It is transparent. It will make a difference. We have been consistently evaluating any weaknesses.

Regarding the street vendors'€™ relocation in Tanah Abang, why do you think your solution resonated with those concerned?

Because there was a process that we went through. We approached them, prepared a concept and organized the strategy. We involved the locals, talked to the street vendors. We aimed to demonstrate the process to the public. We initially predicted that the relocation would need six months, but everything ran very smoothly.

Why had it never worked under the previous administrations?

There was no social intervention. They didn'€™t meet with local figures, the residents, street vendors, the local police and military heads. All of the stakeholders should have a sense of belonging to Tanah Abang. We went through all the details so we could localize the problems.

How can a corrupt, overmanned and sluggish bureaucracy keep up with you?

Through bureaucratic reform. The healthcare program, for example, has a budget of Rp 1.5 trillion [US$132 million]. If we didn'€™t prepare the system, how could we control it? How would we be sure that 100 patients were really treated and not just one? Spending that much money is very easy, but now it'€™s the people who control the system, it'€™s the people who keep the cards. [That'€™s why we applied] online taxes for hotels and
restaurants.

Including the open-call testing for local leaders?

It was part of our effort to achieve good recruitment practices. I think we have worked our socks off over the past year. Can you imagine if I didn'€™t initiate the open-call test and then a case like the one affecting Lurah [sub-district chief] Susan Jasmine [see below] occurred? It would'€™ve been very easy to point the finger at me. But she was chosen through an open system. It was the system that chose her.

How do you describe your relationship with your deputy?

We have our own jobs. Most pairings make the mistake of not dividing their workloads because they have their own agendas: They have political and economic interests. We never talk about such interests and we'€™ve never had a fight.

How do the two of you manage your workloads?

Pak deputy (Basuki '€œAhok'€ Tjahaja Purnama) focuses on internal matters: He prepares the planning after I make a decision or a policy. He is the one who summons the agency heads and leads the meetings '€” something that I can'€™t abide. My job is to meet with the people in the field, to check out the problems and make policies and decisions that will be included in the city budget.

As the governor of Jakarta, you have often criticized the central government'€™s policies. What has been the impact of this?

It'€™s not criticism. The government'€™s decisions impact the regions, so when the government introduces a policy that will directly impact the city, of course I have to speak up. For example, the low-cost green car policy. I was honest: The policy was not right. What is right is affordable public transportation, not
affordable cars.

What are the lessons to be learned from the protest by some Muslim residents against Lenteng Agung subdistrict chief Susan?

First of all, that we have to stick to our Constitution. Secondly, we have to educate our people that we are diverse in ethnicity and religion. We have to educate them to realize that this is a public post so they have to assess the public officials based on their merits and not on their religious backgrounds or whatever. It is true that people have the right to express their aspirations, that'€™s fine, but they must express them in an appropriate way.