558-meter-high tower to 'lift Jakarta's image'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Minister\/State Secretary Moerdiono officially
\nstarted the construction of the ambitious 558-meter Menara
\nJakarta, heralded as the world's tallest tower, at Kemayoran in
\nCentral Jakarta yesterday.<\/p>\n
In his speech, Moerdiono underlined the government and
\nPresident's support for the US$560-million project and asked for
\nthe work to be done meticulously and thoroughly.<\/p>\n
\"The construction of the tower should be considered as a means
\nto elevate Jakarta's image on the international stage,\" he said
\nafter the groundbreaking ceremony at the project site, the former
\nKemayoran airport.<\/p>\n
Other officials attending the event were State Minister of
\nPublic Housing Akbar Tanjung, Minister of Tourism, Post and
\nTelecommunications Joop Ave, Governor Surjadi Soedirdja and
\ntycoon Sudwikatmono.<\/p>\n
The tower is being developed by PT Menara Jakarta with 51
\npercent of its shares owned by PT Indocitra Graha Bawana, a
\nconsortium led by President Soeharto's cousin Sudwikatmono in
\ncooperation with fellow tycoons Prayogo Pangestu and Henry
\nPribadi.<\/p>\n
Forty percent of PT Menara's stake is shared by state-owned
\ntelecommunication companies PT Telkom and PT Indosat. The
\nremaining 9 percent is owned by a foundation run by the state
\ntelevision station TVRI.<\/p>\n
\"The project is expected to be completed in four and a half
\nyears and the grand opening will be hopefully held in 2001,\"
\nSudwikatmono said.<\/p>\n
He said the project would be 70 percent funded by foreign
\nloans and 30 percent from the consortium he chaired.<\/p>\n
\"We expect to reach the return on investment in between 12 and
\n15 years after the project starts operating,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The project was designed by the East China Architecture Design
\nInstitute, which also designed the 460-meter Shanghai Tower --
\nthe world's third tallest tower.<\/p>\n
Menara<\/p>\n
Menara Jakarta, occupying 40,550 square meters of land, will
\nbe four-and-a-half meters higher than the world's current tallest
\ntower, the Toronto Tower. The second tallest is the Moscow tower
\nat 533.5 meters.<\/p>\n
Menara Jakarta will have a 3,050-square-meter revolving
\nrestaurant -- right under the 148-meter antenna mast -- with a
\ncapacity of 450 seats.<\/p>\n
Beneath the restaurant, there will be five stories, each with
\na total of 4,530 square meters of floorspace. They will be used
\nas control rooms for television stations and telecommunications
\noperations.<\/p>\n
A 1,880-square-meter observation deck and a 4,930-square-meter
\nlobby will be below the broadcasting floors.<\/p>\n
Other facilities include eight stories of multifunction rooms
\nfor seminars and entertainment functions and 17 stories for the
\nIndonesian World Trade Center.<\/p>\n
At the base, there will be a U-shaped shopping center and
\nparking lots.<\/p>\n
The project was publicly announced by then minister of
\ninformation Harmoko in August 1995.<\/p>\n
It was strongly criticized. People said the funds should be
\nused for other, more beneficial activities, such as the
\nimprovement of people's welfare.<\/p>\n
The controversy subsided after Sudwikatmono said the project
\nwas financed by private companies as a monument to symbolize the
\nsuccess of the New Order government.<\/p>\n
Surjadi Soedirdja shared Moerdiono's view that the tower could
\nhelp boost Jakarta's image as a major international city.<\/p>\n
\"But, there's one thing we can't forget, the city's goal to
\nimprove people's welfare,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Currently, 243,040 of Jakarta's nine million people are living
\nbelow the poverty line and mostly in slum areas.<\/p>\n
According to the tower's developers, the five stories under
\nthe antenna mast illustrate the five principles of the state
\nideology Pancasila.<\/p>\n
The tower's three pillars symbolizes the three pillars of
\nIndonesia's development: equal distribution of the fruits of
\ndevelopment for the creation of social justice; a high rate of
\neconomic growth; and dynamic and healthy national stability.
\n(ste)<\/p>",
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