The idea to move the capital, raised recently by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, is actually not a new one, because from time to time the relocation issue has been brought up by our leaders. One of the more ridiculous plans, to move the capital to Jonggol in Bogor, was almost implemented by the son of then president Soeharto in the 1990s.
Yudhoyono’s idea, however, remains intriguing, and his ministers need to follow up on it. The government needs to decide on the timeline and the new location to ensure that the long-delayed idea will no longer stay stalled, because there are many valid reasons for this country to have a new capital.
One of the most valid reasons is Jakarta’s overburdening. Many urban planners believe nothing can be done to solve existing problems – traffic chaos, environmental damage, worsening annual flooding, water shortage, air pollution, poor sanitation, etc. – except to relocate some of its burdens elsewhere in the country.
“Going forward, the idea of moving the center of the administration must again be considered and developed, considering Jakarta has become exceedingly crowded,” President Yudhoyono said in Central Kalimantan when meeting with governors from 33 provinces ahead of a recent national working meeting.
It is probably high time for the leaders of this country to make a historical decision to move the capital. Jakarta is no longer able to shoulder the excessive flow of people from across the country. The green spaces are decreasing to only less than 10 percent of the city’s total area of 661.52 square kilometers – far from the ideal 30 percent of the green space as stipulated in zoning laws. In such a condition, the city can no longer conserve rainwater properly. Land subsidence and seawater intrusion into the groundwater are serious environmental problems.
We realize we cannot expect the creation of a new capital to be implemented in the near future, due to financial constraints in particular. But this time we should at least talk about when and where. Apart from talking about the timeline, the leaders need to decide where the new capital should be built.
Should Indonesia consider Malaysia’s example of moving its capital to Putrajaya, just a few kilometers outside Kuala Lumpur, or should we look to Brazil, which built Brasilia in the middle of the rainforest and far away from the old capital of Rio de Janeiro?
If we go the Brazilian way – moving the capital to outside Java, to Kalimantan, Sumatra or Sulawesi – it would be more than just an effort to ease the heavy burden of Jakarta. It is a further effort to create a new center of economic growth outside Java, and at the same time will answer criticism of Indonesia’s development being centered in Java.
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