Most sidewalks in the capital are heavily damaged and a major project will be undertaken to repair them, Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama said on Monday.

Ahok said about 60 percent of the sidewalks in the capital were damaged and repairing them was one of the city administration's focuses in capital spending this year.

Ahok said the city administration had allocated a large portion of the 2016 Jakarta budget to public works throughout the capital, including for sidewalk repairs.

Kompas.com reported on Monday that the budget for public works accounted for 30.5 percent of the 2016 city budget's Rp 66.3 trillion that was passed by the City Council in December.

The sidewalk repair project will also be included in the city's e-catalogue at the National Procurement Agency (LKPP).

"We hope there will be no more instances of contractors doing repairs haphazardly," he said as quoted by Antara news agency.

He said installing fiber optic cables underground was one of the things that had contributed to the damage. Therefore, he urged parties that dug up the ground for installations to take responsibility and fix pavements afterward.

"I will not hesitate to file a lawsuit against such irresponsible people," he said.

Ahok also said the city administration aimed to focus on public transportation improvements, including the purchase of more Transjakarta buses this year. (liz/rin)

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