"Moving offices is easy but how to move 200,000 people?"Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Former Indonesian Vice President M. Jusuf Kalla has stated that calls for moving the capital from Jakarta to another location should not be given priority at this time and the government should instead focus on improving the city`s infrastructure to make it less vulnerable to flooding.
"In my opinion, the solution is not to move but to fix the infrastructure of Jakarta," he said after meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the presidential office here on Friday.
Kalla pointed out that moving the capital would "be an expensive affair as it will involve relocating thousands of government employees".
"Moving offices is easy but how to move 200,000 people? It will be anything but easy," he continued.
Kalla said the city's drainage system must be repaired and the river be widened in order to make Jakarta better equipped against floods.
"Besides, we need to reduce the congestion and squalor in the city today. Once these things are fixed, the flood problem will be pretty much solved," he noted.
Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa also expressed a similar opinion, saying that moving the capital was a not a solution to the problems facing Jakarta.
"It's not easy and it is certainly going to take a lot of time and cost a lot of money for the capital to be moved," he stated.
"We should instead focus on improving Jakarta's infrastructure," Hatta added.
(U.S038/INE/KR-BSR/O001)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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