Jakarta Stalled at the Historical Crossroads
Jakarta today sits in a paradoxical situation, despite the Constitutional Court ruling No. 71 of 12 May, which affirmed that Jakarta remains the capital city until a presidential decision (Presidential Decree) is issued. The capital-related uproar has, thus, been resolved by the court’s ruling. Politically, Jakarta is being prepared for a “one day” departure from its status as the capital, but legally, until the Presidential Decree is issued, it continues to bear the burden of being the capital.
Consequently, the city is trapped in a hanging transitional space—without certainty, without flexibility, and without a legal apparatus that can fully be used to resolve the megapolitan urban problems that are mounting. The relocation of the capital to Nusantara has not actually taken full legal effect. As long as the official Presidential Decree on relocation has not been issued, Jakarta remains the capital.
The implication is that the prevailing legal regime still rests on the aging Jakarta Special Capital Region Law No. 29 of 2007, rather than the Jakarta Special Capital Region Law No. 2 of 2024, which is touted as the foundation for transforming Jakarta into a global city. Here lies the great irony: a new law has emerged, and is already two years old, yet its substantive content cannot yet be implemented. Changes so far have been limited to administrative nomenclature: the governor, the DPRD, and institutional symbols. Meanwhile, the core heart of the law—the special powers needed to manage the megapolitan area—remains locked in waiting for the Kepres, which could come at any time.
Joko Widodo, when he was President, did not dare sign it and instead left it to President Prabowo Subianto. He has not spoken clearly, except to say, ‘Nusantara will be the political capital in 2028’. In truth, Jakarta’s challenges cannot wait. Congestion tightens, floods recur, pollution worsens, waste chokes, housing becomes ever more expensive, and social inequality becomes more evident.
A city with a daytime population of around ten to fifteen million cannot be governed with conventional approaches. It requires extraordinary powers, as promised in the DKJ Act. The act provides around 15 areas of special powers for Jakarta, spanning spatial planning, housing, transport, public environment, education, health, culture, and employment. Added to this are special provisions in governance, civil service, and regional finances. All of this is designed so that Jakarta can escape the trap of conventional bureaucracy and leap to become a global city that competes with 50 other global cities.