More authority urged for Jabotabek agency
More authority urged for Jabotabek agency
JAKARTA (JP): Local politicians are calling on the government to give greater power to the agency which coordinates the development of Jakarta and its surrounding townships of Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi.
Two members of the Jakarta Legislative Council said that without the additional power, the agency would be ineffective in coordinating the development between the capital city and the three neighboring cities.
At present, each city is going its own separate way, Romulus Sihombing of the Indonesian Democratic Party faction said, Antara reported.
The agency, known as BKSP Jabotabek, was established as the borders between Jakarta and its neighboring towns were brought down because of the expansion of the Indonesian capital.
The combined population of Jabotabek (Jakarta, Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi) is now put at about 12 million. The population is expected to triple by the year 2020.
"As Jakarta is trying to solve its various problems, from transportation, land shortages, water supplies, to environmental degradation, the neighboring townships are developing their own separate way," Romulus said.
He proposed that the Jakarta administration seek permission from the central government to give BKSP Jabotabek more authority. "This way, the agency can better plan the affairs that affect the interest of the people, such as transportation."
Granting more authority to the agency would also eliminate the mutual suspicions that exists between the Jakarta and the West Java administrations, he said. Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi all fall under the administration of the West Java provincial government and takes its orders from Bandung.
Saud Rachman, of the United Development Party faction, said the administration of the neighboring cities should support the development of Jakarta as the republic's capital.
"Development cooperation programs between Jakarta and West Java have not proceeded as smoothly as expected because of conflicting interests," Saud said.
On a separate occasion, the executive chief of BKSP Jabotabek, Andjat Lamey, acknowledged that there were still conflicts of interests between Jakarta and West Java, particularly in the transportation sector.
He pointed out that many roads on the border between Jakarta and the neighboring townships have been left neglected because they were regarded as "no man's land".
Yet these roads are important because they provide access for people to and from Jakarta, he added.
Traffic is one of the biggest headaches for the Jakarta administration. The government only recently decided to built a subway mass rapid transport system to circumvent the problem.
Andjat said his agency is currently drafting a bylaw that outlines the organization's structure and cooperation between Jakarta and the neighboring townships.
The proposed bylaw will place emphasis on planning, execution and supervision in administration, the economy, the environment, spatial planning and welfare, he said. The current bylaw places emphasis on transportation, population and land.
Andjat said he is not worried by the prospect of Jabotabek's population growing to 36 million by the year 2020.
When it gets too crowded, people will automatically move out to other areas, he said.
He pointed out that London's population declined by as much as 20 percent between 1960 and 1970 as people moved to the city's outskirts. (emb)