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akarta Police have said that they will deploy 4,158 personnel to secure the annual Jakarta Fair, which officially opened on Thursday in Kemayoran, North Jakarta.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto reassured the event’s visitors on Thursday that the event would be free from pedlars who often extorted visitors by charging them unreasonable parking fees.

Rikwanto said that the police decided to react against the issue following reports from last year’s visitors, who said that they were allegedly charged Rp 10,000-15,000 (US$1.06-$1.59) for parking fees by unidentified men, despite having already paid the official parking fee to the organizer.

“We will clean them out. Of the 4,158 police officers deployed to the area, we will allocate some to guard the official parking area [of the Jakarta Fair] as well as to other areas that were frequently used as ‘informal’ parking areas by visitors,” he told reporters.

Rikwanto added that the police would also take action against the illegal street vendors ripping off their customers.

The vendors, according to Rikwanto, could charge as high as Rp 50,000 for a plate of nasi goreng (fried rice).

“The pricey menus offered by these vendors annoyed last year’s visitors. This year, we will specifically build a police post in the Jakarta Fair for the visitors to file complaints if they encounter these kinds of problems,” he said.

The Jakarta Fair is a one-month long annual event held to celebrate the capital’s anniversary, every June 22.

It features entertainment as well as shopping stalls, which mostly sell items and foods that have become Jakarta’s trademarks.

Visitors must pay Rp 20,000 to enter the fair on weekdays and Rp 25,000 on weekends. The organizer will provide buses from the National Monument Park (Monas) to reach the venue in Kemayoran.

This year’s official parking fees are Rp 8,000 for a motorcycle and Rp 15,000 for a car.

At least 2,650 vendors have confirmed their participation in the event, with the event organizer expecting at least around 4.5 million visitors to attend.

Last year, the event booked total transactions worth Rp 3.7 trillion ($392 million). The organizer hoped that total transaction this year would reach at least Rp 4 trillion. (sat)/(riz)