Jokowi Feels Haunted by Colonial Past in Jakarta Palaces Every Day

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo stressed that the development of the Nusantara Capital City or IKN is what Indonesia desires. He compared the new capital project with the Presidential Palaces in Jakarta and Bogor, which were built by the Dutch and former residences of Dutch colonial governors-general. 

He mentioned that the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies Pieter Gerardus van Overstraten and Johan Wilhelm van Lansberge had lived in the State Palace and Merdeka Palace, while Governor-General Gustaaf Willem van Imhoff had occupied the Bogor Palace.

“We have occupied it for 79 years. I feel haunted by the colonial past every day. And once again, we want to show that we can also build a capital city according to our wishes,” he said during a meeting with regional heads at the Garuda Palace in IKN, Penajam Paser Utara, East Kalimantan, on Tuesday, August 13, 2024, as quoted from the video release.

However, Jokowi acknowledged the lengthy process of developing IKN, which could take 10 to 15 years. Beginning in 2022, the IKN construction has only reached 20 percent completion.

Earlier this week, Jokowi invited ministers for the first cabinet meeting at IKN. The discussion focused on capital development among other issues. The government has allocated Rp72 trillion for the mega project from 2022 to 2024, constituting 20% of the total State Budget of Rp466.9 trillion. The IKN Authority has proposed an additional budget of Rp29.8 trillion for next year. 

Jokowi also announced that Rp56.2 trillion in domestic investment has been secured from 55 projects, and so the government is seeking foreign investors to begin the next phase of the construction. 

DANIEL A. FAJRI

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