Pramono highlights persistent thuggery behind Jakarta's safe city accolade
Jakarta - Governor of DKI Jakarta Pramono Anung Wibowo has highlighted the persistence of thuggish practices in the capital, even as Jakarta has earned the title of the second safest city in Southeast Asia (ASEAN) according to the 2026 edition of the Global Residence Index.
“So, Jakarta is ranked number two (safest), that’s not the Governor’s words, but the result of a global survey. In that regard, there are still meatballs vendors being extorted in Tanah Abang; we acted swiftly, and it has become a serious concern for us,” Pramono said at Lapangan Banteng, Central Jakarta, on Saturday.
According to Pramono, this achievement deserves appreciation, but it must not make the government complacent about issues still occurring on the ground, particularly those affecting small-scale residents.
One case that has drawn attention is the extortion against a meatballs vendor in the Tanah Abang area. The incident serves as a reminder that a city’s security is not only measured by survey data but also by the sense of safety directly felt by the public.
Pramono revealed that he immediately took swift action by instructing the Civil Service Police Unit (Satpol PP) to act decisively.
The perpetrator, who not only extorted but also damaged the victim’s goods, was secured and detained.
“At that time, I immediately called the Head of the Satpol PP Service to take action, and those who extorted and smashed the bowls were directly arrested and detained,” Pramono explained.
He assured that there would be no tolerance for any form of thuggery.
Furthermore, Pramono explained that Jakarta, as a metropolitan city with a population of more than 11 million people, has complex social dynamics.
If calculated with the agglomeration area, the population even reaches nearly 42 million people according to United Nations (UN) data.
With such conditions, the potential for security disturbances remains, but the most important thing is how the government can be present and provide quick solutions.
“Things like that will of course be dealt with firmly and immediately,” Pramono stated.
He also stressed that efforts to maintain security are not only the duty of the apparatus but require public participation in reporting any disturbing incidents.
Through such collaboration, it is hoped that Jakarta will not only excel in rankings but also truly become a safe city for all its residents.
The DKI Jakarta Provincial Government is committed to continuing to strengthen surveillance at vulnerable points and improving the apparatus’s response to public reports, to ensure security that is evenly distributed down to small traders and the informal sector.
Previously, a video went viral on social media showing a thug smashing bowls belonging to a meatballs vendor in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, on Friday (9/4).
Based on the video uploaded by the Instagram account @jabodetabek24info, a man in a blue jacket and blue shorts was seen smashing the meatballs vendor’s bowls.
Initially, the man wearing a cap took a stack of bowls from the meatballs cart, then smashed them against each other until they broke.