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Ahok set to inaugurate Kalijodo park as governor on Sunday
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Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama rides a bicycle in an open area in Kalijodo, a former red-light district that the city administration cleared for the development of a green area. (Antara/Muhammad Adimaja)
G
overnor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnima’s forced leave to campaign for the election ends on Saturday and on Sunday he will inaugurate a park in Kalijodo, North Jakarta.
Ahok, however, is expected to be suspended due to his status as a blasphemy defendant, but it is unclear as to when the Home Ministry will issue the suspension letter.
“I’ll be back at City Hall on Sunday. Stakeholders involved in the development of the Kalijodo park want me to inaugurate it in person,” Ahok said during a blusukan (impromptu visit) to Tegal Alur, West Jakarta, on Wednesday.
Kalijodo used to be Jakarta's oldest and biggest red-light district. Ahok's administration forcefully cleared the area and allowed partnering private developer Sinar Mas Land to develop a semi-natural green park, playground, futsal court, hall and international-standard skate park.
Human rights groups deplored the eviction, which was aimed at opening up 1.6 hectares of new green space, saying it violated the principles of involuntary resettlement according to the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights that Indonesia ratified in 2005.
(Read also: Ahok’s wife wants better mother-child centers in Jakarta)
The construction of the Kalijodo park was completed in late 2016.
The election campaign cooling-off period runs from Feb. 12 to. 14. Jakartans will vote in the gubernatorial election on Feb. 15. (bbs)
