TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo cancelled his plan to attend the training session of a thousand mischievous high school students at the Army’s special forces Kopassus’ Command Hall in East Jakarta on Wednesday, October 23, 2013. Jokowi said he already instructed the Jakarta Education Agency to proceed with the training despite his absence.

“If they receive training, particularly from the Kopassus, I think the results will be good,” the governor said at the City Hall on Wednesday.

The governor has met with the students twice prior to their training. Jokowi decided to skip the training and instead chose to meet with topeng monyet (monkey circus on sidewalks) owners at the National Monument, inspect the construction of the Pluit Dam and medical services at the Tarakan Regional General Hospital, and visit the vendors of Tanah Abang Bukit Market and Tanah Abang Market’s Block G.

Jakarta Education Agency Deputy Chief Agus Suradika said the juveniles gathered in Cijantung were those with bad attitude records at school. The students received mental and behavioral education at the Kopassus’ Command Hall.

The agency took this measure as part of its efforts to deal with increased rate of juvenile delinquency in the capital. The last two cases were the spraying of hydrochloric acid by a twelfth grader of vocational high school SMK Budi Utomo on bus passengers and a sexual harassment case at junior high school SMP 4 in Jakarta.

ANGGRITA DESYANI