President Joko Widodo finally spoke out regarding the swelling budget for the 79th Indonesian Independence Day ceremony on August 17. The budget increase was due to the ceremony being held in two places, namely in the Indonesian Capital City (IKN), North Penajam Paser, East Kalimantan and Jakarta.
Jokowi emphasized that the budget increase was a normal thing.
“Yes, the name used to be only in one place, this is because there is a transition so it becomes in two places, but it is not a big jump. I think it is normal, and reasonable and also the budget is in the Ministry of State Secretariat,” said Jokowi.
On a different occasion, Minister of State Secretary (Mensesneg) Pratikno admitted that there was indeed an increase in the budget because the ceremony was held in two places. Without going into further detail, Pratikno claimed that the budget increase was not significant.
“The ceremony is now held in two places, of course the budget is certainly bigger than before but not significant. I don't remember (the budget increase),” he answered briefly.
Pratikno also denied the news circulating that the government would rent a luxury car like an Alphard to transport important guests at the IKN later. According to him, the government will only use bus transportation.
“Because of the limited infrastructure there, we have to provide many buses. Even so, we have coordinated with local authorities, officials in East Kalimantan, the local government, the district government, with the Regional Police Chief, the Military Commander, together collaborating so that what is needed in the process of the proclamation seconds can be fulfilled,” explained Pratikno.
On Saturday, (10/8), the government held a procession of duplicate flags of the Red and White and the text of the proclamation which was paraded from the National Monument (Monas) to the Capital City of the Archipelago (IKN). This procession event is part of a series of activities to commemorate the 79th Anniversary of the Independence of the Republic of Indonesia.
Deputy for Protocol, Press, and Media of the Presidential Secretariat, Yusuf Permana, explained that this procession involved many elements of society and institutions, reflecting the spirit of unity and mutual cooperation of the Indonesian nation.
The procession was led by the Head of the Presidential Secretariat Heru Budi Hartono and began with the handover of a duplicate of the Red and White flag and the text of the proclamation in the Independence Room of the National Monument from the Head of the Presidential Secretariat to the Purna Paskibraka Duta Pancasila Team.
The procession event also involved around 180 Abang-None from DKI Jakarta, 122 Purna Paskibraka of DKI Jakarta Province, as well as students from the Institute of Public Administration (IPDN), polytechnics, and civil service.
“What's interesting about this procession is the route. Usually, the procession route is only from Monas to Merdeka Palace, but this time we are creating history by holding a procession from the National Monument to the Capital of the Archipelago,” said Yusuf.
After the land journey in Jakarta, the flag and the proclamation text were flown to Balikpapan, East Kalimantan Province by Indonesian Air Force Boeing aircraft. Upon arrival at Sultan Aji Muhammad Sulaiman Sepinggan International Airport, the flag and the proclamation text will be taken to the State Palace in the IKN.
Public Policy Observer Trubus Rahadiansyah regretted the budget that ballooned because the 79th Indonesian Independence Day ceremony was held in two places. According to him, with the economic situation of the community that has not yet recovered, it would be better to save the budget by holding the ceremony in one place, namely Jakarta.
“My suggestion for a good legacy, just hold it in Jakarta. Budget efficient, because there is confusing information between Setneg, KSP as if the implementation (of the August 17 ceremony) is normal with a large budget. That, will actually cause public distrust because the public knows that it is a waste of budget. After all, they did not explain how much the budget was, and did not explain the planning from the beginning,” said Trubus when talking to VOA.
According to him, this also has the potential to cause budget misappropriation or corruption. In addition, there is news that people living around East Kalimantan are not allowed to watch the ceremony directly.
“And they said that the local community is not allowed to watch live, so what for? There is no urgency, what for? This independence belongs to us all, this commemoration marks the heroism of our heroes who have fought. So what I mean is that on August 17, the public should participate in it. If it is held in the IKN, the costs will (swell) and the infrastructure is not there, it will embarrass Indonesia in the eyes of the international community,” he explained.
In addition, because the regulation regarding the transfer of the nation's capital from Jakarta to the IKN has not been signed, Jokowi should think realistically by holding the ceremony in Jakarta only, because the IKN has not been officially declared as the capital of the Republic of Indonesia.
“The derivative regulations of the IKN Law have also not been signed, because of the developments there. There are even two discourses that are developing in the public. It seems that Mr. Prabowo's leadership is not too ambitious to continue, so the potential for it to stall is also considered high by the public,” he concluded. (gi/jm)
