Status of the Land in Tanah Abang Where Maruarar and Hercules Clashed in Argument
The land designated for the construction of a rusun (multi-storey housing) near Tanah Abang Station in Central Jakarta became a point of contention between the Minister of Housing and Settlement Areas (PKP), Maruarar Sirait, also known as Ara, and the Chairman of the Gerakan Rakyat Indonesia Bersatu (GRIB), Rosario de Marshal, known as Hercules.
The location is not far from the flyover bridge that crosses the railway tracks near Tanah Abang Station, specifically behind Pasar Tanah Abang Blok G.
Based on observations by CNBC Indonesia at the site on Thursday (9/4/2026), the land is currently used as a parking area for trucks transporting clothing goods to be sold at Pasar Tanah Abang.
The parking area is tightly guarded by security personnel. When approached, the guards stated that the land truly belongs to the state, specifically to PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero) or KAI. However, for decades, the land has been managed by Hercules.
“If you ask who owns this land, it’s actually the state’s, but for decades it hasn’t been used for anything. You know how it is with empty land,” said one of the locals at the site on Thursday (9/4/2026).
Unfortunately, he did not know exactly when Hercules took control of the land. But he only knew that it has been controlled for decades.
“I don’t know from when, only Hercules’ side knows, but it seems like decades,” he explained.
Previously, Minister Ara visited the empty state-owned land in the Tanah Abang area of Central Jakarta, which has been controlled by a community organisation (ormas).
In the land inspection activity that she posted on her Instagram account, Ara had a debate with Hercules.
GRIB is known to control several plots of land in the Tanah Abang area. This state-owned land was originally intended to be used for building housing for low-income communities or MBR.
“My goal is to build housing for the people here. So not for developers or anything like that,” said Ara when meeting Hercules and several representatives from ormas, quoted on Thursday (9/4/2026).
In response to Ara’s request, Hercules stated that the land managed by his ormas is indeed state-owned land, but its status is HPL (Hak Pengelolaan Lahan).
Hercules emphasised that if the state indeed wants the land in Tanah Abang, he and his ormas would not object if the land is released to be built into housing.
“HPL is for managing the land but not for owning it. If this is the state’s, today I will hand it over,” said Hercules.