Jakarta Deputy Governor Sandiaga Uno said he had tasked the City Council and related agencies to assist INASGOC provide affordable tickets to Asian Games spectators, including by removing taxes from the ticket prices.

However, the city administration is bound by a regulation that states the city can only reduce taxes on the tickets by 50 percent.

The Indonesian Asian Games Organizing Committee (INASGOC) has yet to determine the price of the tickets.

Sandiaga has said the city administration does not plan to gain profits from the Asian Games ticket sales.

“We aren’t trying to profit from Asian Games tickets. We want to remove taxes from the ticket prices, but a city regulation has prevented us from doing so,” Sandiaga said recently, as quoted by kompas.com.

INASGOC chairman Erick Thohir has requested the city administration to make a decision on the matter as soon as possible.

“The event is only 89 days away. We have to be action-oriented, not just making plans,” Erick said.

INASGOC spokesperson Danny Buldansyah has said the price of Asian Games tickets was yet to be determined.

“We still can’t disclose the price range for the event. The price for each sport event may be different depending on the popularity of the sport,” he said.

Danny said West Java and South Sumatra — two other provinces where events will be held — had decided to remove taxes from the ticket prices. (cal/wit)