Tangsel Police to Facilitate Street Running Races

Following in the footsteps of several regions, Tangsel police will facilitate street running races. Similar to what has already been done by a number of regions in response to street running races at night during Ramadan, the police in Tangerang Selatan (Tangsel), Banten, will also facilitate the phenomenon popular with young people. The Tangsel Police (Polres Tangsel) plans to facilitate running activities for the community during Ramadan. The programme is conceived as an effort to curb potential negative actions such as fights, illegal racing, and sarung wars that often occur at night. Tangsel Police Chief AKBP Boy Jumalolo said the activity is scheduled to be held on weekend nights to be centralised and not disrupt community activities. “Yes, this coming Saturday night or Sunday night. We’ll try that night first, gather the youths so they’re centralised on the holiday night. Rather than fights or illegal races, it’s better they engage in running,” Boy said on Monday (2/3). Boy explained the activity is also hoped to foster sportsmanship, physical strength, and a sense of togetherness among young people. He noted the authorities will also assess community enthusiasm for the activity. The Tangsel Police even plan to involve the Indonesian National Sports Committee (KONI) to see the athletic potential from the activity. “Later we will facilitate first, what the concept is, how the enthusiasm is, etc. We will also invite KONI. If there are good prospects, of course they can be continued with coaching,” he said. Further, Boy said the event location will be centralised in one area to avoid disrupting traffic and public order and safety. “The activity will be centralised to prevent disruption to other road users and to public order and safety. Basically, we want to channel their energy into positive activities rather than sarung wars,” he explained. Earlier, regional governments or forkopimda across several areas have facilitated street running races that young people enjoy spending the night during Ramadan. Some examples include Bogor Regency and several cities/regencies in Riau.