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Jokowi’s policies amid regime maneuvers and party paralysis
The root of the unaffordable housing problem is the incredible rate at which house prices have increased over the last decade, which is much faster than the increase in the income of the poor.
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House for lease: A man walks on Jan. 26 past the Sentra Mulya Jaya low-cost apartment in Cipayung, East Jakarta. Built as a joint project managed by the Social Affairs Ministry and the Public Housing Ministry, the apartment is available for low-income families to rent at Rp 100,000 (US$6) per month. (Antara/Asprilla Dwi Adha)
T
he government announced two controversial policies in the first week of June: mandatory Public Housing Savings (Tapera) contributions and mining permits for religious social organizations.
Public Housing Savings (Tapera) is a government program designed to help people have affordable and habitable homes by saving collectively. The government argued that the problem of unaffordable housing could be resolved in the spirit of "mutual cooperation".
Tapera is a government program designed to help people access affordable and habitable homes by saving collectively. The government argued that the problem of unaffordable housing could be resolved in the spirit of "mutual cooperation".
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo's government has decided that workers, including civil servants, soldiers, police personnel, private workers and independent professionals, must participate in the Tapera program starting May 2027.
At about the same time, the government made a breakthrough policy by granting special mining business permits to business entities owned by religious social organizations through Government Regulation (PP) No. 25/2024, which amends PP No. 96/2021 concerning the implementation of mineral and coal mining activities. The second policy breakthrough was announced based on the value of “ekonomi kerakyatan” (people’s economy).
There is a fatal logical fallacy in the policy response made by the government to the two big problems we face — the housing crisis for low-income communities and the lack of strong ekonomi kerakyatan practices in managing Indonesia's natural resources.
The root of the unaffordable housing problem is the incredible rate at which house prices have increased over the last decade, which is much faster than the increase in the income of the poor. The root of this problem occurs due to weak state control over the available land.
