Jakarta International Stadium Not the Work of Anies Baswedan Only, Says PDIP

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Member of Jakarta Legislative Council (DPRD) from the PDIP faction Gilbert Simanjuntak said the Jakarta International Stadium (JIS) was not just the work of Governor Anies Baswedan. He argued that Basuki Tjahaja Purnama alias Ahok and Joko “Jokowi” Widodo also played a role in the stadium project.

“The land acquisition took place in the era of Governors Jokowi and Ahok as the replacement of the Lebak Bulus Stadium. It had not been built yet because they lost in the 2017 Regional Head Election (Pilkada), so the project was continued by Governor Anies,” Gilbert told Tempo, Monday, January 31.

Gilbert revealed the fact that the project had even been planned since the era of governor Sutiyoso. However, the construction plan had not been published at that time.

In addition, he claimed that the construction project was almost stuck in 2020 due to the lack of funds following the COVID-19 pandemic. The Central Government then stepped in to provide assistance through the national economic recovery program (PEN) funds amounting to Rp3.6 trillion in 2020 and 2021.

“The budget for the JIS development is Rp4.5 trillion, meaning that 80 percent of the construction costs are from the central government,” Gilbert added.

Given the roles of previous governors and the central government, Gilbert underlined that it was unethical for Anies to claim that the stadium project was because of his own role.

The PDIP politician also said that the debt burden for the PEN funds would also be borne by the Regional Budget (APBD) and the governor after Anies Baswedan.

The regional-owned developer Jakarta Propertindo President Director Widi Amanasto said the JIS project construction in Papanggo, Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, has nearly reached 97 percent completion.

Read: Anies Baswedan, Ridwan Kamil Discuss Y20 Summit in Menteng

M JULNIS FIRMANSYAH