T

he two-week nationwide moratorium on 37 elevated infrastructure projects declared by the government following a spate of occupational accidents should give all stakeholders an opportunity for soul searching on what has gone wrong and what remedies should be made.

Most accidents, some of them claiming the lives of workers, were because of the collapse of massive concrete girders. Most recently, a girder beam at a toll road that will reduce travel time between Bekasi and Jakarta fell early Tuesday, injuring seven people.

State-owned PT Waskita Karya, which is responsible for the project, has admitted negligence that led to the mishap. Police are gathering evidence and will likely press for criminal charges.

Twelve workplace accidents in six months are just too many. There must be flaws in the management of the projects that showcase President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s infrastructure ambitions. Therefore, his decision to put the multi-billion dollar projects on hold makes good sense despite the potential financial and time losses, not to mention the traffic chaos they cause.

The projects’ management teams have been required to submit their work plan documents to the National Committee for Construction Safety for review, while field checks of vital indicators such as material quality, equipment, occupational safety and health systems, compliance with standard operating procedures and labor certification are conducted. The committee answers to the Public Works and Housing Ministry.

The road and railway projects are being implemented by various contractors, including state-owned companies like Waskita Karya. Among the most important projects are the light rapid transit (LRT) connecting Jakarta and its satellite cities of Bogor, Depok and Bekasi, Jakarta’s MRT, the Jakarta-Cikampek elevated toll road and the Palembang LRT that has been accelerated for the Asian Games scheduled to take place Aug. 18-Sept. 2, which is co-hosted with Jakarta.

The moratorium deals the heaviest blow to Jakarta, which is racing against time to complete its LRT ahead of the Asian Games. These days, vehicle users have to try hard to keep their head on when passing the notoriously congested Jakarta-Cikampek toll road project.

As victims of the workplace disasters are nursing their wounds and the authorities go back to the drawing board, a polemic has erupted over State-Owned Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno’s pick of the review
committee consultants.

Critics question the reviewers’ impartiality as the committee is dominated by senior bureaucrats from state-owned companies. For example, the chairman of the team of experts, Budi Harto, is the president director of PT Adhi Karya — one of the state contractors of the projects under review.

Given the limited period for project safety assessments, we should not waste any more time and hope that the committee upholds the principles of independence for the good of all.

Further delays of the projects would have serious consequences in financial and social terms. We hope the assessment team can accomplish its job on time so that the projects can resume as early as next Monday, as
Public Works and Housing Minister Basoeki Hadimoeljono has promised.