Joko Siswanto, 40, was pushing his wheelchair-bound son Nikho with gleaming eyes as he scanned through the myriad of faces jostling for the best position to clearly see Persija players riding on an open double decker Transjakarta bus on Saturday.

With sweat pouring from his forehead, the Purworejo, Central Java-native joined thousands of fans to celebrate the long-awaited victory of the Jakarta-based soccer club. Joko and his son are avid Persija fans, dubbed as Jakmania.

“I really love them,” Joko told The Jakarta Post.

Joko joined the parade on foot while pushing his son’s wheelchair for around five kilometers from Gelora Bung Karno Stadium (GBK) to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta on Saturday morning.

“I’m tired but joining this parade is all worth it. As long as I’m still on my feet, I’ll do it,” he added.

The wave of orange-clad Jakmania started at 9 a.m. from GBK and began to move toward Jl. Sudirman and Jl. MH Thamrin, heading to City Hall. Fans followed Persija players and officials who were riding on open double-decker Transjakarta bus in a victory parade to celebrate the club’s title win of the country’s premier league Go-Jek Liga 1.

The Kemayoran-based soccer club claimed the winning title last week after defeating Mitra Kukar at the GBK 2-1. With 18 wins, Persija came out top of the league with the highest scores of 62 points.

It was a historic celebration as this was the first time Persija brought home the title again after their last victory in 2001.

“This victory is important because we had to wait for 17 years. The energy here is unbelievable and the togetherness of Jakmania is just amazing,” said Luut Rado, 41, a Jakmania who had brought along his three children on a motorbike.

With merriness, fans joined the parade on buses, cars and motorcycles while most happily walked while playing snare drums, lighting orange flares and singing the club’s victory song.

“It makes me happy being in a crowd like this. To watch all of us celebrate the victory of our beloved team,” said Riyan Hidayat, a Jakmania who brought his own snare drums to add to the orchestra of noises.

Those who were on foot waved their own rendition of Persija flags and other attributes as they marched proudly to City Hall where Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan held a welcoming party for the club.

At City Hall, a stage welcomed the players and officials to show off three trophies. Besides this year’s league title, Persija also won the 2018 President’s Cup in February and a regional soccer tournament, the 2018 Boost SportsFix Super Cup, in Malaysia in January.

“We have waited for 17 years. Our struggles have finally created very satisfying results. Thank you Jakmania!” said I Gede Widiade, president director of Persija, during its opening speech.

He reminded Jakmania to maintain order during the parade.

The club’s die-hard fans have a history of vandalizing venues, with the latest act of vandalism from Jakmania taking place after Persija’s final match last Sunday where vandals scribbled “Jkt Day” on a Transjakarta bus.

Persija veteran players Bambang Pamungkas and Ismed Sofyan also joined the stage, although several current players including, Croatian player Marko Simic, were absent.

During the parade, many supporters repeatedly shouted “stadium!”, referring to their demands to the Jakarta administration to realize the long-delayed plan of building a new stadium that will serve as Persija’s
headquarters.

In his speech, Anies vowed that his administration would begin construction of the BMW Stadium in North Jakarta next year.

“We will realize our promises one by one. The stadium is not from the city administration, but a gift from Jakartans and their achievement for the city’s future,” he said referring to one of his campaign promises during the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial elections campaign trails.

The parade went smoothly with no incidents as authorities had prepared security and traffic management measures. More than 4,200 personnel from the Jakarta Police, Indonesian Military and the Jakarta administration were deployed to secure the victory parade as well as to conduct traffic rerouting as some routes were redirected and closed for traffic adjustments. (mai)

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