Zulhas Claims to Receive Weekly Calls from Prabowo Over Jakarta's Waste Issues

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs Zulkifli Hasan (Zulhas) admitted that he had been receiving phone calls from President Prabowo Subianto almost every week regarding the waste problem in Jakarta Province.

Zulhas stated that Jakarta is already facing a waste emergency, which must be handled quickly by various parties from upstream to downstream.

Zulhas shared this information on the President’s attention during the signing ceremony of the memorandum of understanding for the Waste-to-Electricity Project (PSEL) between BPI Danantara Indonesia and the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government.

“Jakarta has received special attention from the President. We were almost, a few weeks ago, called almost every week about waste, mainly Bantar Gebang, Governor,” said Zulhas at the Coordinating Ministry for Food Affairs Office, Jakarta, on Monday (4/5/2026).

Of that amount, 87% still relies on open dumping processing (piling up in open spaces) as at the Integrated Waste Disposal Site (TPST) Bantar Gebang.

“It has far exceeded capacity. If measured, Bantar Gebang, Governor, is like a building with how many floors? 16, 17 floors,” Zulhas remarked.

According to Zulhas, the waste at Bantar Gebang must be addressed because it often serves as a public benchmark.

Even though waste across Indonesia has been managed, if the waste at Bantar Gebang remains problematic, the public will consider that the entire waste issue has not been resolved by the government.

“If Bantar Gebang is sorted out, but others are not, people will say the waste is already sorted,” Zulhas explained.

Head of the Jakarta Provincial Environmental Agency, Dudi Gardesi Asikin, stated that his side is committed to providing waste for the PSEL.

The Jakarta Provincial Government ensures that land at those two points can be used by Danantara for PSEL.

“The provision of land is not done by us, but through cooperation,” Dudi said when met after the meeting.