Protesting bus crews damage 8 vehicles
Protesting bus crews damage 8 vehicles
JAKARTA (JP): Eight vehicles were vandalized on Monday by some
of the hundreds of Metro Mini public minibuses who were staging a
heated rally on Jl. Bekasi Raya, East Jakarta, to protest the
illegal operation of vans serving their Tanjung Priok-Pulogadung
service route.
Two of the vehicles, both Isuzu Panther minivans, belonged to
the operational unit of PT Metro Mini, a private firm that is
jointly owned by several Metro Mini owners, while the other six
vehicles were privately-owned vehicles bearing no legal license
for taking passengers.
Four staff who drove the two minivans were actually attempting
to calm down the upset drivers, who angrily blocked the cars and
asked the four to leave the cars before pushing the vehicles into
a ditch where they were staging the protest just in front of PT
United Tractor, some 400 meters from Pulogadung bus terminal
since 6 a.m.
"The protesters were angry since the staff threatened to send
big metromini buses to serve the stranded passengers today," said
Anwar, 50, one of the protesters.
Hundreds of commuters heading for the Pulogadung terminal were
also forced to walk after the vehicles they were riding were
ordered by the police to return in the direction of Cempaka
Putih, some 1.5 kilometers from the protest site, in a bid to
avoid a possible clash.
No clashes were reported during the seven-hours protest but
the protesters unfortunately occupied one of the lanes in the
two-lane street for parking their minibuses, creating severe
traffic congestion on nearby streets for hours.
Only a handful of police officers were seen watching the
protesters from a distance.
Arriving in around 60 Metro Mini minibuses, the protesters
demanded the city administration ban all the private vehicles,
which have been illegally serving thousands of passengers to and
from Pulogadung terminal and the huge manufacturing complex of
Nusantara Integrated Zone (KBN) in Cakung-Cilincing area, North
Jakarta.
During the protest, the bus crew blocked any vehicles from
entering or leaving Jakarta's busiest inter-city bus terminal,
causing a chaotic traffic situation in the crowded area.
The KBN area, home to hundreds of export-oriented firms, is a
place of work for thousands of people, most of whom reach the
area using transportation from Pulogadung and nearby Tanjung
Priok terminals.
The presence of the unofficial transportation apparently
caused great losses to the Metro Mini drivers and their
attendants.
"Our revenues dropped after the operation of the unofficial
vehicles. Unfortunately, the administration never banned them
from operating in the street," Soebagyo, coordinator of the
protest, told reporters.
According to the protesters, drivers of the illegal public
vehicles also charged their passengers Rp 300 higher than the Rp
700 rate set for the official minibuses.
Separately, chief of the East Jakarta Police Sr. Supt.
Syafrudin Fabanyo said the protest was the responsibility of
city's Traffic and Public Land Transportation Agency (DLLAJ).
"I have called them to settle the protest," he said.
The protesters vowed to stage a similar protest in Tanjung
Priok terminal on Tuesday. The protesters dispersed peacefully at
1 p.m. (asa)