Jakarta has recently elected its 17th Governor, Mr. Basuki Tjahaja Purnama. We caught up with Clarissa Tanurahardja to get her take on why she thinks he is the man to mark a new era for Jakarta.

The Governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama. Photo: Solo Bagus.

The new Governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, is a leader who is notable for his straight shooting and transparency in his role in public office. He has also helped reduce the communication gap by opening his phone line to Jakarta’s citizens.

One of the main characteristics of Basuki’s vision for Jakarta, is his efforts to make Jakarta one of the first smart cities in Indonesia. For instance, he bought Google Enterprise in order to build “Jakarta as a smart city”. The new Governor has also installed fiber optics networks and 3.000 CCTV cameras in Jakarta to improve accountability.  His vision for Jakarta as a smart city is to enhance technology to empower Jakarta citizens’ lives. He also believes transparency in government’s work will create public trust in the long run.

Basuki also initiated Jakarta’s tourism vision for both Jakarta’s citizens and tourists by providing double decker buses to go around historical and attractive landmarks in Jakarta. In 2015, he also successfully proposed the Kota Tua Area in Jakarta as a nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Basuki wants to preserve Jakarta’s traditional culture by revitalising the Kota Tua area.

Basuki faced some challenges during his work as Governor of Jakarta, such as how to handle corruption in the bureaucracy and the effective management to solve flooding in Jakarta. To reduce inefficiency in the bureaucracy, he implemented e-budgeting system with greater security to reports directly to Ministry of Home Affairs. Furthermore, he collaborated with Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management to mark a flooding area in Jakarta and solve complaints for Jakarta’s citizens.

During his time as Governor of Jakarta, he suggested street vendors move to specific market areas thus helping to reduce traffic congestion. He also negotiated a minimum wage increase for citizens, and has commenced surprise inspections of government offices. Moreover, Basuki also launched e-money for helping Jakarta’s citizens in parking payment and TransJakarta buses in order to fulfill the vision of Jakarta as a cashless society.

He has vision that working for Jakarta’s citizens should be based on core principles such as integrity, justice for society, and professionalism. As he states, “The Jakarta that we strive for is a Jakarta with humanitarian principles and that upholds a great character!” (“Jakarta yang kami perjuangkan adalah Jakarta dengan prinsip-prinsip kemanusiaan dan mewujudkan karakter yang hebat!” )

To learn more about the new Governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, you can visit his website or Twitter. To explore more about Jakarta as smart city, you can visit the official website.