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Govt calls for election to stay in Jakarta bill
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Haze caused by air pollution shrouds skyscrapers in Jakarta on the morning of Sept. 5, 2023, as seen from the vicinity of the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC) in South Jakarta. (JP/A. Muh. Ibnu Aqil)
T
he government has called on lawmakers to allow Jakartans to elect their own governor once the city loses its national capital status as the House of Representatives kickstarted the deliberation of the Jakarta special designation bill on Wednesday.
The House has been seeking to speed up deliberations on the bill before President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration begins moving the national capital from Jakarta to the Nusantara Capital City (IKN) in East Kalimantan in August.
The bill, first drafted by lawmakers of House Commission II overseeing home affairs, seeks to redefine Jakarta’s standing as an autonomous province within an expansive agglomeration urban region that serves as the country’s economic center.
The House Legislation Body (Baleg) held a meeting with the government and the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) on Wednesday that formally kicked off deliberations on the bill which is expected be brought to a House vote in an upcoming plenary session during the current sitting period.
In the lead-up to Wednesday’s meeting, observers had taken issue with a provision in the bill that gives the president the sole authority to appoint and dismiss Jakarta governors, thereby foregoing direct elections entirely.
Home Minister Tito Karnavian told the meeting that the government has been firm in its stance on sticking with regional elections, as he asked lawmakers to revise the provision so Jakarta would still be led by an elected governor.
“The government’s stance is clear, [we are] firm in our position that [Jakarta’s governor] should be elected, not appointed,” he said during the meeting, greeted by applause from those in attendance.
