TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Andrinof Chaniago, political observer from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences, said the city of Depok, West Java, needed a leader who will improve the environment of the city. "He has to be able to make this city clean, orderly, comfortable and beautiful," Andrinof said yesterday.
Health and educational problems are no longer priorities in Depok because they are being handled directly by the central government. Public services and environment must be prioritized for the comfort of the people, said Andrinof.
Depok has the dirtiest lake. Pladen Lake in East Beji, Depok, is known as the world’s dirtiest lake. Bridge construction projects in several places are also still uncompleted and have even caused casualties.
Depok Mayor must build houses for middle-class people since the residential development has only been focused on the upper class.
The number of angkot (public minivan) is also a problem because it has increased five times to around 14,000 units in Depok, making traffic jam unavoidable. "The tariff should be just Rp2,000," Andrinof added.
Several candidates have been reported to become the next Depok Mayor such as Rieke Diah Pitaloka from the PDI-P, Pradi Supriatna from the Gerindra Party, Babai Suhaemi from the Golkar Party and Tifatul Sembiring from the PKS. Andrinof has no comment on who is suitable to become Depok Mayor.
AYU WANDARI
