Seribu newest district in DKI
\nor
\nSeribu officially becomes a regency
\nor
\n1000 Islands, Jakarta's only regency<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
After being delayed twice, Kepulauan Seribu was finally
\ninaugurated on Friday by Governor Sutiyoso as a new regency with
\nKamil Abdul Kadir appointed as the first regent.<\/p>\n
The inauguration ceremony was held on Pramuka island. The
\nislands, located in Jakarta Bay, were previously a subdistrict
\nunder the North Jakarta mayoralty, and were made a regency
\ndespite some opposition from local bureaucrats.<\/p>\n
At present there are 106 islands in the group but most still
\nstruggle to cope with serious problems such as poor public
\nfacilities and transportation, limited electricity, a lack of
\nfresh water and increasing environmental damage.<\/p>\n
On Pramuka island, which will be the capital of the regency,
\nthe residents only enjoy electricity for 12 hours a day, starting
\nfrom 6 p.m. There is no tap water and they have to rely on the
\nrain for fresh water as the ground water is brackish.<\/p>\n
Those issues were raised by Sutiyoso in his speech, explaining
\nthat the problems had affected the residents economically and
\nsocially. Some 74 percent of 17,800 residents work as traditional
\nfishermen and most of those are near the poverty line.<\/p>\n
However, the economic level of the residents is contrasted
\nwith the Seribu image, which is of a relatively upmarket holiday
\narea with some expensive resort islands. Most of those resorts
\nare managed by private companies, or have become the private
\nproperty of certain tycoons.<\/p>\n
Despite the economic condition of the majority of the
\nresidents, the islands have been nearly neglected by its
\nadministration officers. According to several Pramuka island
\nresidents, the most recent district head refused to live on the
\nisland.<\/p>\n
\"The district head and his family live in Jakarta. He came
\nhere to do his job from 9 to 5 but his wife only came here when
\nthere was an event,\" a 45-year-old resident said.<\/p>\n
Perhaps in response to similar complaints, Sutiyoso
\nspecifically ordered the new regent to live on the island and
\nsocialize with the residents so that he could experience the
\nproblems, and not just hear about them.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso told reporters later that he gave the new regent six
\nmonths to set up the new regency.<\/p>\n
\"If there is no improvement, we will evaluate his position,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Two banners reading \"Don't give us new status only, give us
\nprosperity\" welcomed the governor and other guests. A day before,
\nsome 15 Seribu residents staged a protest outside the city
\ncouncil building in Central Jakarta to air similar grievances.<\/p>\n
Separately, several residents on Pramuka island told The
\nJakarta Post that they expected the new status to improve their
\nwelfare.<\/p>\n
\"We don't expect much. Just give us jobs,\" said Ali.<\/p>\n
Ali's colleague, Rahmat, said he had heard that there was a
\nplan by the city administration to open a gambling center in the
\nislands. He said that the residents would support the
\nestablishment of the facility in hopes that they may be hired by
\nthe proposed casino.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso recently unveiled his plan to establish entertainment
\nand gambling centers on several islands, but that has, so far,
\nreceived mixed reactions from the city councillors as well as the
\npublic.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/seribu-newest-district-in-dki-1447893297",
"image": ""
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