W

ith the presidential election nearing, some have quipped that nature has joined the bashing of Jakarta Governor Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo, as floods hit the city and displaced tens of thousands of residents early this week.

Seriously, however, as the legitimate leader of the capital city, Jokowi needs to take a stand '€” although this may be unpopular '€” to address once and for all one of the chronic questions that has been persistently haunting Jakarta: whether or not he will run for president later this year.

Jokowi declared a state of emergency on Monday, as floodwaters had not only inundated residential areas but also paralyzed infrastructure across the city, bringing traffic to a halt and preventing Jakarta'€™s citizens from reaching their schools and workplaces.

The city railway operator on Monday had to cancel six routes of its commuter train lines as flooding deluged part of its tracks.

As far as the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) forecast is concerned, it seems the worst is yet to come. The agency has predicted the rainy season will not end until March. Meanwhile, the high moon that could spark a high tide in the sea to the north of Jakarta will reach its peak on Friday.

Jakarta endured one of its most devastating floods in February 2007, when nearly 60 percent of the city was inundated. At least 50 people were killed and 320,000 others were displaced. With thousands of people affected over the last few days, helping flood victims is undoubtedly the top priority.

Quick delivery of basic needs is paramount, as there have been reports that humanitarian assistance remains elusive for flood victims who have been living in shelters since Saturday. As the government cannot do it all alone, community initiatives to help those in need are both vital and appreciated.

For the government of Jakarta, which is affected the most by the flooding, the disaster serves as a reality check on whether its mitigation projects are working well. The city administration has embarked on efforts to prevent floods, such as relocating squatters to pave the way for revitalizing Pluit reservoir in North Jakarta and Ria-Rio reservoir in East Jakarta, dredging the rivers that dissect the city, helping the Bogor government to demolish illegal villas that have occupied water catchment areas and so on.

The city government, however, needs the guts to resettle people living along the riverbanks en masse to enable the normalization of the 13 rivers to take place. The densely populated banks of the Ciliwung River in Kampung Pulo, East Jakarta, one the areas hit hardest by the flood, could
be the priority. The plan to normalize the Ciliwung, Tangerang, Angke and Sunter rivers last year did not materialize despite the Jakarta government'€™s firm actions to relocate the squatters.

Obviously, the city government has a lot of work to do to free Jakarta from flooding, albeit gradually. Arguments with the central government, which also has a foothold in the city, will not lead the city administration to finding solutions, but cooperation and coordination will.