The Home Ministry’s regional autonomy director general said during a meeting with city administration officials at City Hall on Thursday that resolving the Bantar Gebang situation would be his first priority.

“Pak Ahok especially asked me to solve one problem, which is [Bantar Gebang in] Bekasi,” he said.

Sumarsono said he was ready to hold discussions with the various stakeholders involved in the matter.

“I will visit the Bekasi mayor to discuss the problems and seek possible solutions,” he said.

Ahok had previously said that he hoped that there would be no friction between Jakarta and Bekasi. Jakarta dumps around 6,500 tons of waste in Bantar Gebang every day.

Bekasi and Jakarta have often clashed over Bantar Gebang Landfill, which is located in Bekasi, but owned by the Jakarta administration. After previously being managed by a private entity, the landfill is now run by the Jakarta Sanitation Agency.

The rift started when a number of garbage trucks from Jakarta were stopped by Bekasi city councilors and the Bekasi Transportation Agency for violating working hours and using a prohibited road.

Bekasi councilors threatened to close access to Bantar Gebang over the violations. The city administration and the Bekasi administration have since renewed the contract for the Bantar Gebang landfill.

A new problem, however, has arisen as the garbage trucks now often have to queue for hours to enter the landfill as too many trucks arrive at the same time. The resulting stench has angered local residents.

The Sanitation Agency is trying to solve the problem by better managing the trucks’ schedule.

Sumarsono said besides Bantar Gebang, he also would take care of issues such as the city budget deliberation, as well as guiding the process of determining the new minimum wage (UMP).

“I will solve those things that cannot be delayed,” he said. He added that issues that were not time-sensitive could wait until the duly elected governor could take care of them.

Sumarsono, who once served as the acting governor of North Sulawesi, has said his goal is running the administration in accordance with Law no. 23/2014 on regional government for the next three-and-a-half months. “The administration should be business as usual, especially relating to the permit issuance process,” he said.

He said he asked city agencies and working units to filter which issues needed his immediate attention.

Sumarsono said he also emphasized the importance of civil-servant neutrality. “The neutrality of the [city] staff can help to create a safe and stable election,” he said.

He encouraged officials to actively communicate with him. “We can use text message groups to consolidate our work,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ahok, who will take leave until February, also asked for his subordinates to be neutral during the election. “I hope all officials can work in accordance with their job description. Do not take part in politics, that would be a problem,” he said.

Besides Ahok, who is paired with Deputy Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat, former governor’s assistant for culture and tourism Sylviana Murni will also run in the gubernatorial election, as running mate of Agus Yudhoyono, the son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

The final candidate pair is former education and culture minister Anies Baswedan and businessman Sandiaga Uno.

On his last day before taking leave as governor, Ahok officially saw off 50 mosque attendants, known locally as marbot, on a minor haj pilgrimage.

He also signed an agreement with eight private companies pledging to revitalize the fountain of the Hotel Indonesia Traffic Circle, known as Bundaran HI.

“We signed it today because they [the companies] did not want to sign it with the city secretary. They wanted it with me,” he said.

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