REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The controversial reclamation project in Jakarta Bay should be stopped as its cons outweigh its pros, an oceanographer stated.
"From the environmental aspect, the reclamation of 17 islands is not a viable decision. So, it must be stopped," Alan Koropitan, an oceanographer from the Bogor Institute of Technology, stated here recently.
Koropitan said he was not averse to the reclamation plan if it was in keeping with the interests of the public and was beneficial from the social, economic, and the environmental aspects.
In the meantime, Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (Ahok) had recently remarked that the 17 reclamation projects in Jakarta Bay can be continued despite the Jakarta Legislative Council having refused to continue deliberation on the draft bylaw regarding the site map of coastal areas and islets in Jakarta Province.
After all, the developers cannot construct buildings on reclaimed islands, pending the passage of the draft bylaw.
"To construct buildings on the reclaimed islands, they have to await the passage of the draft bylaw. If they have not been passed, the developers are not allowed to construct buildings on the reclaimed islands," he pointed out.
Besides this, the permits for 17 reclamation projects in Jakarta Bay can be extended every year, he added.
"Reclamation permits have no expiry date and can be extended every year. If the reclamation projects cannot be completed within a year, the permits can be extended," Ahok stated.
However, if developers cannot fulfill the requirements, the permits can be revoked, he emphasized.
Ahok said he had no reservations at being nicknamed the "governor of Podomoro" or "governor of reclamation."
Ahok remarked that major property developer Agung Podomoro had been cooperative in providing CSR funds for Jakarta.
"Besides this, there are people who are referring to me as 'the governor of reclamation.' Is reclamation bad? Governor Ali Sadikin did it too. Do you think Ancol is not from reclamation, so the Nusantara Bonded Zone (KBN)," Ahok pointed out.
"Hence, do not merely make political statements on the reclamation," Ahok, who will run for another gubernatorial term in the simultaneous regional head election (Pilkada) next year, stated.
Agung Podomoro is one of the developers for the Jakarta Bay reclamation project.
The Corruption Eradication Commission has named President Director of PT Agung Podomoro Ariesman Widjaja for allegedly paying Rp2 billion in bribes to Mohamad Sanusi, the Jakarta legislator from the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party.
The bribe was given in connection with the deliberation of draft bylaws on a zoning plan for Jakarta's coastal area and small isles for the 2015-2035 period and on a spatial plan for the strategic North Jakarta coastal area.
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