April 19, 2016 edition
JAKARTA Governor Basuki Tjahaja 'Ahok' Purnama says no one can manipulate his leadership. The pledge was made after the Corruption Eradication Committee (KPK) slapped a travel ban on staff member Sunny Tanuwidjaja for allegedly bribing a Jakarta lawmaker from the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party, Mohamad Sanusi, in relation to the Jakarta Bay reclamation project.
The KPK confiscated Rp140 million and US$8,000 from a Rp1 billion agreed-upon fee. Sunny is suspected of acting as the middle man between Sanusi and a group of investors involved in the reclamation project. These firms were united in opposition to a hike in 'added contribution' that was then being debated at the Jakarta City Council (DPRD).
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April 12, 2016 edition
'TO hit with someone else's hand'.
This may be the best way to describe the fishermen angry over a bevy of new regulations passed by Fisheries and Marine Affairs Minister Susi Pudjiastuti. Several of these groups sent data to Vice President Jusuf Kalla, allegedly indicating mass layoffs and diminishing incomes as a result of her policies.
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April 5, 2016 edition
THE emergence of app-based taxis has aroused the ire of conventional taxi companies. On March 22, hundreds of taxi drivers under the Association of Land Transport Drivers (Organda) held a demonstration in Jakarta. The rally triggered huge traffic jams and turned violent in several locations.
The taxi drivers wanted the government to ban the apps. They complained of losing customers to the cheaper, friendlier, faster service. Their incomes, they said, plummeted.
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March 29, 2016 edition
RELIGIOUS issues typically color the public's discussion of politics prior to an election. When Basuki Tjahaja 'Ahok' Purnama ran as Joko Widodo's running mate for the Jakarta governorship in 2013, for example, his Christian identity in Muslim-majority Jakarta was invoked in attempts to discredit his candidacy. The strategy is common nationwide.
It now seems, however, that such strategies are losing favor, with voters becoming more nuanced in their selection of a candidate.
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March 22, 2016 edition
BASUKI Tjahaja Purnama, popularly called Ahok, decided to run as an independent candidate in next year's Jakarta gubernatorial election, and his decision has been met with excitement. Two weeks ago, after he named financial and regional asset management chief Heru Budi Hartono as his running mate, the support he received through Teman Ahokhis primary volunteer organizationgrew even greater.
From the beginning, the Indonesian Democratic PArty of Struggle (PDI-P) intended to support the Ahok-Djarot Syaiful Hidayat ticket. However, Ahok eventually grew tired of waiting for confirmation. He needed all the time he could get to collect the thousands of identity cards needed to qualify his independent candidacy.
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March 15, 2016 edition
THREE weeks ago, floodwaters reached 20 centimeters on Jalan Medan Merdeka Selatan, Central Jakarta. Although it had stopped raining, the water was not receding. The cause was finally discovered after water systems officers investigated sewers in front of the energy and mineral resources ministry building. The sewer was clogged with cable wrappingsup to 22 medium truck loads of the stuff.
Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama said he suspected someone had committed the act intentionally to discredit the Jakarta government's ability to fight floods.
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March 8, 2016 edition