J

akarta will mark its 490th year this week, yet the capital seems too old to party, as the city administration will not hold any massive festivals to celebrate its big day, which falls within the Ramadhan fasting month.

Like his predecessor, former Jakarta governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama, the newly inaugurated Jakarta Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat will only carry out a low key birthday with a “Diversity, Unity, Serving” theme on June 22.

The only event that may enliven the birthday bash is a religious Beduk Festival (drumming competition), which will also be held to welcome Idul Fitri.

“The birthday will fall during the fasting season so we will hold a Beduk Festival and gema takbir [prayer in praise of Allah],” Djarot said.

The competition began at the district level from June 16 to June 19 and the winners of each district will compete at the municipality level on June 21.

On takbiran (recital of God is great) parade night on the eve of Idul Fitri, six finalists from five municipalities and one regency in Jakarta will compete at City Hall to vie for a gubernatorial trophy and cash prizes.

The administration’s assistant to the secretary for administrative affairs, Bambang Sugiono, said each of the six finalists would also take home a goat.

All prizes will be granted by Djarot through his operational fund as governor, Bambang said.

Franky Mangatas, the city’s assistant to the secretary for economic affairs, who is also the anniversary celebration coordinator, said on June 22 that the administration would hold an event for civil servants at the National Monument in Central Jakarta.

In the afternoon, the administration is set to hold a plenary meeting at the City Council, during which it will report its accomplishments throughout the year to the council.

After the meeting, the administration will hold a gala for the officials.

However, unlike the previous year when the dinner was held at City Hall, this year the banquet will be held at the City Council after the meeting, Franky said.

On his visit to Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in Kalibata, South Jakarta, on Friday, as part of a series of events to mark Jakarta’s birthday, Djarot, who visited with some civil servants, expressed his wish to see improvements in the city bureaucracy in the future.

By visiting the tomb, Djarot said he hoped civil servants would be encouraged to serve residents more effectively and refrain from committing corruption.

Djarot will pass the baton to Jakarta governor-elect Anies Baswedan and deputy governor-elect Sandiaga Uno in October.

Social and political scientist Lisman Manurung from the University of Indonesia said the incoming leaders would be challenged to maintain and improve the quality of the city’s bureaucracy as their predecessors had left a legacy of a clean and functioning meritocracy.

This meritocratic system, introduced under former Jakarta governor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, had succeeded in implementing regulations stated in the State Civil Apparatus (ASN) Law and minimizing the practice of corruption in the bureaucracy.

The system was later expanded and refined under the leadership of Ahok, the deputy who took over from Jokowi when Jokowi was elected president in 2014.

Yogi Suprayogi Sugandi, a public policy expert from the University of Padjadjaran, said the administration could improve the bureaucracy by establishing an appropriate working system.

Currently, he said the quality of the bureaucracy had been improved because of Ahok’s strong leadership. Given Ahok’s departure, the performance of the bureaucracy might decline, he aruged.

“The administration should form a system to guarantee service quality to residents,” he said.