City asks House support<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Jakarta administration is seeking help from members of the
\nHouse of Representatives to put pressure on the central
\ngovernment to disburse funds to finance several big projects in
\nthe city, including the development of the subway and the East
\nFlood Canal.<\/p>\n
\"We request them to press the central government to live up to
\nits commitments made earlier,\" Deputy Governor Fauzi Bowo said on
\nTuesday after meeting the House's Commission XI on financial
\naffairs.<\/p>\n
Fauzi said many projects vital for the public had come to a
\nhalt and have been delayed due to lack of funds.<\/p>\n
Citing an example, Fauzi explained that the delay on the East
\nFlood Canal project was because the central government failed to
\nimmediately develop plots of land already acquired by the Jakarta
\nadministration, giving elbowroom for squatters to occupy the idle
\nland.<\/p>\n
The central government has promised to provide Rp 2.53
\ntrillion (US$281 million) for the canal project, while the city
\nadministration would cover the cost to acquire 400 hectares of
\nland, which hovers at about Rp 2.47 trillion.<\/p>\n
The development of the 23-kilometer-long canal -- linking five
\nrivers in the eastern part of the capital -- is meant to help
\nmitigate annual flooding in that area of the city.<\/p>\n
The central government also expressed its commitment to help
\nthe administration get soft loans from foreign donors to fund the
\nMass Rapid Transit subway system worth about Rp 7 trillion in
\norder to tackle transportation woes in the capital.<\/p>\n
\"Unfortunately, the projects are seemingly not on the central
\ngovernment's priority list,\" Fauzi further lamented.<\/p>\n
Last week, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration
\nhad again expressed the green light for the subway project.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, House member Vera Febianti revealed that the
\nlegislature would lend its support to the administration's
\nefforts to materialize strategic projects in the capital.<\/p>\n
\"The development of the subway, for instance, will depend on
\nthe vital role of the central government to get soft loans from
\nforeign donors,\" Vera said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/city-asks-house-support-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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