Sutiyoso wants burning of garbage truck in Bekasi be investigated

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The sour relationship between the city administration and the Bekasi municipal administration over use of the Bantar Gebang dump site in Bekasi was further aggravated on Thursday after the burning of a city-owned garbage truck whose driver dumped garbage on the roadside near the site.

Governor Sutiyoso ordered on Friday that his officers investigate the incident, saying that the driver should not have dumped the waste in an improper place.

He said the driver did it upon the request of scavengers, who would search the garbage for items that could be recycled.

He said that disciplinary action would be taken against the driver.

But Sutiyoso denied reports that the truck was burned by angry residents.

The governor said that the truck was set ablaze by a group of local youths after the driver refused to give them money.

He promised to handle the case thoroughly in an effort to improve the soured relationship with the Bekasi municipal administration, admitting that Jakarta relies heavily on Bekasi in the handling of garbage.

"We have to work together to solve the problem. But of course, we have to get a win-win solution," he said.

The city administration is in dispute with the Bekasi administration over Jakarta's use of the 104-hectare Bantar Gebang dump site.

Bekasi has accused Jakarta of causing environmental damage and threatened to close it down by the end of the year unless Jakarta appoints a private company to properly treat the waste, set up an independent team to evaluate the work, and hand over 50 hectares of the site to Bekasi.

Sutiyoso warned on Wednesday that legal action could be taken against the Bekasi administration as Jakarta had secured a permit to use the site until 2003.