"Mr President sends greetings to you all. He would like to ride the train prior to July 28, maybe one week before," Minister Pandjaitan stated at Tegalluar Station in Bandung District, West Java, on Thursday.
The minister called on the management of the project to complete various requirements at the station so as to be suitable for the president to visit.
"I think we should prepare this (station) even more neatly. I would like to ask all worker colleagues to tidy up the station, so that President Jokowi, who had the courage to undertake this project, will witness good things here," he remarked.
According to the minister, the Jakarta-Bandung HSR Project is almost complete as of June 2023.
However, he noted that several things still need to be worked on. He targeted the project to be completed by August 18, 2023.
"Hence, I would like to ask all colleagues here, both from China and Indonesia, to finish this work. Hopefully, we will be able to ride the train by August 18, and the president will inaugurate it immediately or afterwards," he stated.
Pandjaitan also noted that the government had been eyeing to extend the project to reach Surabaya, East Java. Nevertheless, such an expansion will require support through the transfer of technology and Indonesia's experience, he stated.
"Since we are exerting downstream efforts, a lot of materials will be produced domestically. This, in turn, will create job vacancies for MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises) and the others," the minister affirmed.
He stated that currently, some 400-600 Indonesians are taking training courses in China to prepare themselves to operate and maintain the high-speed train.
"This serves as a foundation for the next government to continue this program. This will boost our economy," he concluded.
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Translator: Bagus Ahmad, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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