Wanted, a Jakarta governor with listening skills Dwi Atmanta  ;  A staff writer at The Jakarta Post

JAKARTA POST, 31 Agustus 2014

                                                                                                                       

                                                      

Indonesia is bracing itself for a new era under Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who will take office as the seventh president on Oct. 20. But so is Jakarta, with Jokowi’s departure from City Hall paving the way to the governor’s seat for his deputy Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama. New, however, does not necessarily mean better; it can be the other way around. Take for example the New Order, which offered stability and prosperity at the expense of liberty. After more than 30 years, when demand for reform was irresistible, the New Order faded away (although, like an old soldier, it may never die). Many will welcome Ahok’s succession to Jakarta’s top executive job, and hope the new governor will do more than he has achieved as second-in-command of the capital city. The pairing of Jokowi and Ahok looked likely to live up to their billing as a dynamic duo shortly after they were sworn in on Oct. 5 two years ago. Jokowi hopped from one place to another without prior notice to capture a candid picture of the problems facing the people and his administration, while Ahok revamped the foot-dragging bureaucracy without worrying about possible internal dissent. Both Jokowi and Ahok have emerged as media darlings ever since they declared their bid to contest the Jakarta election. Undoubtedly, Jokowi enjoyed this privilege when he finally shot for the presidential post and won it. The same treatment applies to Ahok. No one, except the minority Islamic hardline groups, would question his eligibility to lead the capital city, let alone his policies. The public was quick to support Ahok in an argument over the relocation of Tanah Abang street vendors against United Development Party (PPP) politician and native Betawi figure Abraham Lulung in September last year. Fearless Ahok has twice been embroiled in a fight with a Cabinet minister. Last year Ahok suggested that Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi read the Constitution in response to the minister’s objection to the appointment of a Christian to lead a predominantly Muslim subdistrict in South Jakarta. More recently, Ahok was involved in a standoff against Youth and Sports Minister Roy Suryo over the Jakarta government’s plan to demolish Lebak Bulus Stadium in South Jakarta. The media, and perhaps the public, tend to stand behind Ahok, as his leadership style is rare in this country. His oftentimes offensive words are buried under his much-vaunted bureaucratic reform, his anticorruption campaigns, his responsiveness and his accessibility. Many have even accepted his bruising remarks as a characteristic that distinguishes him from his predecessors. Ahok’s rise to the gubernatorial post will certainly be welcomed by many, thanks to his decisiveness and zero tolerance of corruption. As acting governor when Jokowi took leave to focus on the presidential race in July, Ahok threatened to dismiss all the civil servants working at a vehicle-test center in West Jakarta after finding sharp practices going on there. Earlier this month, Ahok dismissed and downgraded a number of public housing agency officials for their alleged role in illegal sales of low-cost apartments meant for the poor. In an interview with The Jakarta Post recently, Ahok pledged to immediately fire government officials caught in the act of corruption. He pledged also to seek help from Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) to conduct checks on government officials whose lifestyles did not match their monthly earnings. Ahok envisions a city where the law is enforced indiscriminately for all citizens, whether rich or poor, educated or illiterate. He appears to have learned that inconsistent law enforcement leads to public disorder, as in the cases of slum areas along river banks that have been blamed for exacerbating floods, or congestion as a result of street vendors who choose roadsides over stalls inside markets as their business premises. Certainly, Ahok’s ascent to power has given the poor community of 375,700 people in Jakarta and their defenders a cause for concern. Evictions, as part of the provincial government’s bid to resettle squatters to low-cost apartments, have been rampant since Ahok took over de facto leadership of Jakarta. Urban poor activists consider Ahok’s policies biased toward the middle class. They say Ahok emulates previous governors, particularly Sutiyoso and Fauzi Bowo, who got tough with the poor — primarily through eviction campaigns. Sandyawan Sumardi, founder of Ciliwung Merdeka, which is concerned about education for the poor, says Ahok’s penchant for eviction simply proves his lopsided view of Jakarta’s development. Moving squatters to low-cost apartments will not necessarily solve the problem of poverty, as their relocation also deprives them of their livelihoods. Sandyawan suggests that Ahok listen more to the poor if he really wants to alleviate poverty. Unlike Jokowi, Sandyawan says, Ahok does not like to listen but to talk, which is why he cannot build empathy. “About five months before the gubernatorial election, Ahok came to me to ask for advice. But in fact, the meeting was just two hours of him talking,” Sandyawan recalls. Like Sandyawan, the people of Jakarta are pinning their hopes on Ahok to lead Jakarta to prosperity and justice for all. Ahok has secured public trust — the most precious capital in governing the city. That he quickly responds to any report or complaint related to public services, and that people have direct access to him, are further plus points. Ahok may need to assert his new status as the “godfather of Jakarta” to show his firmness, but without empathy, strong leadership will result in tyranny. ●