TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Jakarta 2023 Formula E electric car racing event will certainly receive the green light from the Acting Governor of Jakarta Heru Budi Hartono. Heru allowed Formula E to be held in 2023 and 2024 according to the agreement with Formula E Operation (FEO).

The organizing of Formula E race in the next two years is one of the several programs remaining in progress by former Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan. The event was on the verge of failure due to the Jakarta House of Representatives refusing to disburse regional capital participation (PMD) for Formula E Jakarta because it was considered a waste of money during the pandemic.

Before ending his term on October 16, 2022, Anies had secured the international event by issuing Jakarta Governor Regulation No. 30 of 2022. The governor's regulation was an amendment to the Governor's Regulation No. 83 of 2019 concerning the Assignment to Jakpro Limited Liability Companies in the Implementation of Formula E Activities.

"The amendment to the Governor Regulation concern is from five years to three years," said Vice President Corporate Secretary of Jakpro Syachrial Syarief in a text message, Sunday, November 13, 2022.

Anies also added a provision regarding the agreement between Jakpro and Formula E organizers. The provision states that the agreement between the two parties that had been agreed before Governor Regulation 30/2022 was issued will remain valid according to the period. This point is included in Article 10A.

Initially, Jakpro and Formula E Operation (FEO) as the organizers of Formula E had agreed to race in Jakarta for five seasons, 2020-2024. The inaugural race was supposed to be held in 2020 but was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Therefore, Jakpro renegotiated with FEO which resulted in the Jakarta EPrix being held for only three seasons in 2022-2024. The first race in Jakarta will be held at the Ancol circuit, North Jakarta on June 4, 2022.

The Amendment to the Governor's Regulation that was signed by Anies on June 23, 2022, removed one clause in Article 5 paragraph 1. This article discusses the sources of funding for the Jakarta Formula E event.

Initially, there were six sources of funding, namely regional capital participation (PMD), corporate capital, joint venture capital with other business entities, and loans from financial institutions. Furthermore, grants are legal and non-binding and other forms of funding that are legal are by statutory provisions.

In Governor Regulation 30/2022, funding from Jakpro PMD was removed. "Previously there was PMD, now there is only B2B (business to business)," said Syachrial.

Head of the Information Center of the Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri) Benni Irwan explained that Acting Governors can change or issue regional head regulations because they have the same authority as the definitive regional head.

However, an Acting Governor cannot arbitrarily change the rules. According to Benni, four matters cannot be directly determined by the Acting Governor as regulated in Article 132a paragraph 1 and paragraph 2 of Government Regulation Number 49 of 2008.

The four matters include:

1. Carry out employee mutations
2. Cancel permits that have been issued by previous officials and/or issue permits that are contrary to those issued by previous officials
3. Make a policy on a regional expansion that is contrary to the policy of the previous official
4. Make policies that conflict with previous government administration policies and development programs for officials

"The acting regional head can amend or make Regional Head Regulation while still paying attention to the rules for limiting the authority above," Benni explained on Monday, November 14, 2022.

Benni added that the limitation of authority on the four matters can be excluded. The condition is that the acting regional head needs to get approval from the Minister of Home Affairs.

Jakarta Acting Governor Heru Budi Hartono had previously invited Formula E Jakarta to continue. He handed over the continuation of the international electric car race to Jakpro.

"It is already a B2B, go ahead and ask them if Jakpro and Ancol undertake it, please," said the Head of the Presidential Secretariat at the House of Representatives, Central Jakarta on Wednesday, November 9, 2022.

Chairman of the PDIP of the Jakarta People's Representative Council, Gembong Warsono, also has no problem with the Jakarta EPrix being continued. Provided that Jakpro first evaluates this year's event and the source of funding from the private sector with the B2B scheme.

If Formula E Jakarta 2022 harms residents, he continued, then Heru Budi must revise Governor Regulation 30/2022. "The revision of the Governor Regulation is so that regional financial management is not wasted on programs that are not a priority," said the member of Commission A for Government Affairs of the Jakarta People's Representative Council.

LANI DIANA WIJAYA

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