Joint office planned for MRT project
Ahmad Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Governor Sutiyoso announced on Monday that his administration would establish an office with a Japanese consortium to realize the US$1.5 billion Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) project.
"We will use a vacant office formerly used by a deputy governor," Sutiyoso announced after meeting Takehiro Takeuchi, an executive of the Japanese consortium, at City Hall.
The governor had four deputies in previous years, but the number was reduced one to earlier this year.
Sutiyoso revealed that the Japanese government was ready to provide a soft loan totaling US$1.5 billion with a 1.9 percent annual interest rate for the project.
However, he said the central government had decided against proceeding with the project in favor of other projects, such as laying double tracks for the Java railway network.
"So I have urged the Japanese government to push the central government to endorse the project. The project should be prioritized," he said.
With an increased city budget, Sutiyoso stated the city administration could pay off the loan by installment by paying between Rp 120 billion and Rp 150 billion a year
The current city budget amounts to Rp 9.7 trillion, while next year's budget is expected to be Rp 10.6 trillion.
Earlier, the Japanese consortium was reportedly reluctant to commit to the project due to security concerns.
The project, which would span 15 kilometers from Jl. Fatmawati in South Jakarta to Kota in West Jakarta, was initially planned by a Japanese, European and Indonesian consortium in 1995.
The MRT is expected to ease traffic, which is often congested in many parts of the city due to the lack of an integrated transportation system.
The city administration has also failed to join hands with the governments of the bordering towns of Tangerang, Bekasi, Depok and Bogor, from where millions of people commute to their workplaces in Jakarta.
In the first stage, the MRT would connect Jl. Fatmawati to the National Monument (Monas) Park in Central Jakarta. The system would combine an elevated track and subway.
The Japanese government initially committed to financing the project with a special yen loan that carried a 7.5 percent interest rate per annum. The special loan package would have a maturity period of 40 years with a grace period of 10 years. Construction was estimated to be completed within five years.
The project was postponed when the financial crisis hit Indonesia in mid-1997.