Mayor rejects 'Gotham City' stigma attached to West Jakarta

West Jakarta Mayor Iin Mutmainah does not want her area to be stuck with the ‘Gotham City’ stigma because it is considered unsafe, like the fictional city full of crime in DC Comics stories.

“We do not want West Jakarta to be called Gotham City. How can West Jakarta be unsafe? At night there are still many of our residents playing football and carrying out activities,” said Iin during a gathering of the West Jakarta Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimko) with residents at the RW 10 Community Hall, North Meruya Urban Village, Kembangan, on Monday (24/8).

According to her, the nickname does not reflect the reality and spirit of residents in looking after their neighbourhood. The security and comfort situation in West Jakarta is a collective responsibility.

“The success of maintaining order in the area depends on close collaboration between the regional government, law enforcement officers and elements of the community,” said Iin.

She said that this cross-sector gathering programme is being held in stages and will continue across all sub-districts in West Jakarta to open up space for direct dialogue with residents.

She also reminded parents to supervise their children more strictly, so that they avoid brawls, drugs and various activities that could harm their future.

“Let us become police officers for ourselves. That means we do not become perpetrators of crime and we do not become victims of crime,” said Nasriadi.

Meanwhile, West Jakarta Military District Commander 0503 Lieutenant Colonel Saputra Haki reminded residents to be wiser in responding to circulating information, especially on social media.

Every piece of information needs to be checked for accuracy first, so that unverified news does not cause panic that leads to unrest.

“It must be properly checked whether the information is true or not. Do not let unverified information cause panic and lead to unrest,” he said.