East Flood Canal still a pipedream, no govt fund

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Officials admit there has been no significant progress in the 23-kilometer flood canal project in the eastern part of the capital because both the central government and the city administration have not disbursed any funds to commence the work.

"We can't do anything now as the fund, mostly from the central government, has not been disbursed," Leo Sianturi, head of technical section of the water resources department at the Department of Public Works told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

The Rp 12 billion (US$1.2 billion) East Flood Canal is a project which has been agreed upon by the central government and the city administration to solve flood problems here.

Governor Sutiyoso had earlier said clearance of some 250 hectares for the project, requiring some Rp 1.3 trillion, should be finished this year. Leo, however, said that so far only five hectares of land had been cleared.

Meanwhile, Djendam Gurusinga of the Ministry for Resettlement and Regional Infrastructure, said there were no technical problems involved in the project, the feasibility study of which was conducted in 1973. The central government hired an Amsterdam- based consulting group, Nedeco, in 1976 to design the canal.

Djendam said that so far there was no talk about land clearance in his ministry as the financial resources were still being discussed at the Cabinet level.

"I don't think that the land clearance could be done this year," he said.

Djendam is head of the special unit handling issues connected with the Ciliwung and Cisadane rivers, which is under the Directorate General of Water Resources.

The East Flood Canal is part of the government's plan to build a half-circle-like canal along the northern part of the city that will take in water from the city's 13 rivers originating in the highlands of Bogor and Depok in West Java and emptying into the Java Sea off North Jakarta.