TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – The Jakarta administration has scrapped 268 projects and cut the budget listed on the Gubernatorial Regulation on Jakarta 2015 Budget. Jakarta Development Planning Board Tuty Kusumawati said the cancellation of those projects was a consequence of a budget cut, from Rp72.9 trillion (US$5.6 billion) to Rp69.2 trillion (US$5.3 billion) enforced by the Home Affairs Ministry.

“The removal of hundreds of the programs is the result of the budget cut,” Tuty said at the City Hall on Thursday, April 23, 2015.

Tuty said the Jakarta administration did not only cut budget for direct expenditures, particularly the capital spending, but also the indirect ones, including the budget for the levee A construction in the project of National Capital Integrated Coastal Development and the busway fly over that connects Tendean and Ciledug. The budget for both projects was included in a multi-year scheme.

According to Tuty, the Jakarta administration has carefully considered the budget cut. For instance, the city has canceled a budget of Rp28 billion (US$2.1 million) for the procurement of caravan-type fire mobile stations this year.

“Based on the evaluation, [the fire stations] procured last year had not been utilized,” she said.

Three weeks ago, Koran Tempo published an article about the neglected fire stations. Tuty guaranteed that the project removal would not disrupt public services.

City Council member Prabowo Soenirman viewed that the budget cut for the multi-year projects was appropriate. According to Prabowo, there is a possibility that the budget will not be absorbed.

“The budget will be disbursed in May, so the contractors will have only six months to spend it,” he said.

Antonius Yulianto, the corporate secretary of state-run construction firm PT Waskita Karya, said the budget cut would not disrupt the construction of the Tendean-Ciledug Busway flyover.

“We will finish the project as scheduled,” Yulianto said, adding that he hoped the city administration would officially notify his company about the budget cut.

ERWAN HERMAWAN