T

he municipal administration of Surakarta, Central Java, has assured local residents that the programs launched by outgoing Mayor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who next week will be sworn in as Jakarta governor, will be continued and implemented as originally planned.

Municipal secretary Budi Suharto said all the programs were included in the administration’s list of annual programs and had also received fund allocations from the city’s budget. “There is nothing to worry about,” Budi said in Surakarta on Tuesday.

He called on Surakartans to closely monitor the implementation of the programs in the field and asked them to offer criticism and input if any programs were not implemented.

“We are ready to accept criticism if there are programs that do not run as they should,” Budi said.

Among the programs already being implemented are the Surakarta Community Health Maintenance (PKMS) cards, the Surakarta City Community Education Aid (BPMKS) cards, sanitation facility development and a housing program covering the city’s 51 subdistricts.

Programs waiting to be implemented include the rehabilitation of traditional markets, such as the famous Klewer market, and the city’s corridor arrangement.

During the first six months of this year, 15,235 PKMS Silver cards, 47,940 PMKS Gold cards and 2,312 PKMS Platinum cards were distributed to people with a combined budget of Rp 10.9 billion (US$1.13 million). At present, a total of 221,722 PKMS Silver cards and 14,181 PKMS Gold cards, worth Rp 19 billion in budget funds, have been distributed to the public.

“What worried me was the thought that after Jokowi left, those services would no longer exist,” Mulyanto, a 51-year-old PKMS Gold card holder, said.

Jokowi, however, had been clear on the issue: whoever replaced him as Surakarta mayor would continue the PKMS and BPMKS programs.

Separately, Deputy Mayor FX Hadi Rudyatmo said he also prioritized continuing Jokowi’s programs. He added, however, that the programs already in the system would not be reworked unless improvements needed to be made on them, including planned improvement for PKMS cards.