Dilemma of Accelerating IKN's Activation: Between Budgetary Burden, Political Stakes, and Risk of Waste

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Calls to utilise the buildings already completed in the Nusantara Capital (IKN) are gaining momentum. One option is to station civil servants (ASN) there so that the standing structures are not wasted. However, this step is deemed premature if based on budgetary efficiency reasons. Director of the Indonesia Political Review (IPR) Iwan Setiawan believes the assumption that early utilisation of IKN can save budget is not entirely accurate. According to him, mobilising ASN to IKN at this stage could instead add to the government’s fiscal burden. He explained that relocating ASN is not just about using available infrastructure. Additional costs must be prepared, from employee relocation, provision of housing, to other logistical support. “Because if the government starts mobilising ASN to move and work in IKN, it will require more budget,” he said. In this context, Iwan reminded that the current government is implementing budget efficiency policies. “Meanwhile, the Prabowo Subianto administration is carrying out further efficiencies to anticipate rising oil prices, effects of the Iran vs Israel-America war,” he stated. Therefore, he tends to support operating IKN according to the stages planned by the government, namely becoming active as a political centre in 2028 as stipulated in the presidential regulation (Perpres). “I tend to agree that IKN starts becoming active in 2028 as per Perpres No. 79 of 2025,” he said. In that regulation, IKN is designated as the “Political Capital” starting in 2028, with development focusing on completing trias politica facilities, namely executive, legislative, and judicial, as well as gradual relocation of ASN. On the other hand, Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka’s plan to start working in IKN this year is seen by Iwan as inseparable from political dimensions. “If linked to Vice President Gibran’s plan to start working in IKN this year, I see it as a symbolic political step,” said Iwan. He assessed that Gibran has an interest in maintaining the continuity of the IKN project, which is the legacy of the 7th President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi).