Mega wants new plan drawn up for reclamation project<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta<\/p>\n
President Megawati Soekarnoputri ordered Governor Sutiyoso on
\nThursday to commission a new plan and a new environmental impact
\nanalysis for a controversial reclamation and development plan
\nslated for the city's north coast.<\/p>\n
During a meeting with State Minister for the Environment
\nNabiel Makarim, Megawati said the original plan should be
\nreviewed due to its likely adverse effects on the environment.<\/p>\n
"The President instructed the city administration to involve
\nmy office in preparing the new plan right from the very
\nbeginning," he told the press.<\/p>\n
Nabiel said the President's instruction was a good sign that
\nthe ongoing dispute between his office and Sutiyoso might soon be
\nresolved.<\/p>\n
The reclamation project -- to be carried out by the city
\nadministration's Jakarta Waterfront Development Board (BP
\nPantura) -- had given rise to a legal dispute between the Office
\nof the State Minister and the board.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso had insisted on pushing ahead with the project,
\narguing that it represented the implementation of Presidential
\nDecree No.52\/1995. Last year, Nabiel urged Megawati to revoke the
\ndecree, saying that the project would only cause further serious
\nenvironmental damage to the already badly polluted coastline.<\/p>\n
However, the Jakarta Administrative Court ruled in favor of
\nthe board early in February.<\/p>\n
The Office of the State Minister is awaiting the decision of
\nthe Supreme Court on its appeal.<\/p>\n
It is only now, after the case has been going on for a year,
\nthat Megawati appears to have taken an interest.<\/p>\n
Some insiders at the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
\n(PDI-P), which is chaired by Megawati, suggested that her belated
\nintervention might be related to the trouncing her party received
\nin Jakarta during the April 5 legislative elections. They pointed
\nto Sutiyoso's unpopular policies, such as the widespread eviction
\nof destitute squatters, as the root cause of the party's poor
\nshowing in the capital.<\/p>\n
The Rp 20 trillion (US$2.13 billion) project involves the
\nreclamation of some 2,700 hectares of land on the north coast.
\nThe reclaimed land is to be used for the construction of luxury
\nhouses, hotels, condominiums, an industrial zone, a port,
\nbusiness centers, shopping malls, offices and recreation places.
\nThe project is expected to take 30 years to complete, if it
\nfinally gets the go-ahead.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mega-wants-new-plan-drawn-up-for-reclamation-project-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}