Population is puzzles Jakarta
JAKARTA (JP): Governor of Jakarta Surjadi Soedirdja believes population growth is one of Jakarta's most serious problems and that the city must find a way to curb migration of rural people.
"There are in fact various problems prevailing here, which are all equally urgent. But, we are giving high priority to the population affairs since many other problems are closely knit with it," the governor told a press conference at the City Hall yesterday.
Surjadi said other problems which prevail in the capital include the growth of informal sectors, the incompetence of city officials and the inadequate transportation system.
"Most of the problems to some extent originate from the rapid growth of the population," he said.
He said the administration is trying to solve the problem through two strategies. Slums are being transformed into more decent places to live and impeding migration.
"To improve the condition in the city there is no alternative than to get rid of slums and build low-cost apartments so that former slum dwellers can live a more decent life and at the same time the city will look more pleasant," said the governor.
Stubborn
The Jakarta administration has occasionally failed to carry out the plan because many slum dwellers refuse to move to apartments, mostly because they can't afford to pay the rent, as was recently witnessed in West Tebet subdistrict, South Jakarta, Surjadi said.
On the other hand, he said, the administration has successfully built at least 12 blocks of apartments and is presently constructing another nine in six former slums.
"All the low-cost apartment blocks will have a total of more than 5,000 units."
He said during his routine weekly tour of the city he has always instructed all subdistrict chiefs to control their areas and deter migrants from erecting new slums as quickly as possible.
"I always tell the lurah 'Control your area!'. Since, if the number of squatters has posed as a problem they will be very difficult to make them leave the area.
In case the squatters have managed to settle down they will only quit the area after setting a lot of conditions which include compensation from the administration.
"They do not deserve it since they have illegally occupied state land," said Surjadi.
Early tackling of the problem, he said, will hopefully deter aspiring migrants.
The governor also said there are people who clearly make a living by exploiting the poor and politicians who have made the best use of the existing social gaps for their own interests.
In conjunction with the efforts to curb the migration of rural people, Surjadi said, Jakarta will cooperate with other provinces in Java and Bali on a campaign to curb migration.
The governor said Jakarta has in fact gained successes in its efforts to stop population growth.
According to data collected by the City Hall, the population growth declined to 1.96 percent in 1992, compared to 2.41 percent annually in the last decade and 4.6 percent between 1970 and 1980. (jsk)