City plans to erect Diponegoro statue

City plans to erect Diponegoro statue

JAKARTA: After erecting a statue of Gen. Sudirman, which
proved controversial, the city administration is now planning
another, of national hero Diponegoro, an official said on
Tuesday.

The statue is to be located on the median strip in front of
the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) office, on
Jl. Diponegoro, Menteng, City Parks Agency head Sarwo Handhayani
said.

Sarwo and said property giant Ciputra would finance the
construction.

"The statue to be made of bronze is now being designed in
Yogyakarta," he said.

Unlike the construction of the Gen. Sudirman statue, the
Diponegoro statue, worth a planned Rp 10 billion (US$1.08
million), will not be built in return for advertising space.

Critics have said the administration has allocated too much
money towards beautification projects while failing to address
essential infrastructure, including housing for the poor and
flood mitigation works. -- JP