Traders question slow pace of Ciputat market construction

Text and photos by Johansyah

TANGERANG (JP): Traders from Ciputat market, which was destroyed by fire in 1994, are hoping the market can be completed as quickly as possible.

But for the past month hardly any construction has been visible, although the reconstruction is scheduled for completion this year.

"If this goes on I am sure the site around the market here will become worse," Rahman, a trader, said.

"There have been three developers but none of them have completed their jobs," he added.

The last developer is PT Betania Multi Sarana.

Some of the 350 traders said revenues have dropped by half due to competition from traders along Jl. Dewi Sartika and other streets nearby.

Buyung, who operates in a temporary shelter, said he used to sell up to 70 chickens a day, but now he finds it difficult to sell even half as many.

"Traders don't like to operate here because the kiosks are only makeshift places with narrow alleys, which makes shopping difficult," Buyung said.

The market traders have been provided temporary shelters by the district office, but the kiosks are located in a muddy area.

The hundreds of kiosks are now used as garbage dumps, one trader said.

Shoppers prefer to buy from the roadside traders. The former market traders charge that officials are deliberately turning a blind eye to the congestion caused by the vendors.

Buyung, a chicken trader, accused officers of demanding bribes from the roadside vendors, citing information that the strategic sites were "sold" for up to Rp 600,000 (US$255.10).

Police officers say they are tired of removing the roadside traders.

"We move them on at 4 a.m. and they appear again an hour or so later," a police officer said.

Since the vendors came to the area, congestion has started at 3 a.m., running until 11 a.m.

The vendors themselves complain that they are hit with clean- up charges by officials, "but no one is picking up the trash,".

Garbage dumps stretch from the Jl. Dewi Sartika to nearby Jl. Ariaputra.

Gutters are clogged up by garbage, and there is a used tire in front of an electronics store.

The neglected market, the congestion and the garbage are among the reasons why residents still complain that the Ciputat district which borders South Jakarta and Tangerang, is like a neglected stepchild of the Tangerang regency.

Large potholes slow down traffic although Jalan Ariaputra, which leads to several housing complexes, has been repaired.

The area around the former market, located on the same road as a bus terminal, has been a source of congestion for years.

Since the fire, a new terminal has been planned further south in Pondok Cabe to ease traffic in the area.