During his campaign three years ago, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama- familiarly known as Ahok-promised that Jakarta would be free of floods and traffic congestion, if he was elected deputy governor of the capital city. Today, he is governor of Jakarta, but a flood-free Jakarta remains a distant dream.

Last February, the heavy downpour paralyzed the city. Deep floodwaters covered the northern and western parts of Jakarta and even the presidential palace