Jakarta, GIVnews.com – Jakarta’s Acting Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, better known by his name “Ahok”, is expected to be installed Jakarta governor this month.
A letter issued by Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo to the City Coucil (DPRD) said that Ahok will have to be installed governor no later than November 18, according to existing laws, said DPRD Speaker Prasetya Edi Marsudi recently. He did not mention the exact date.
And Marsudi did not say whether the minister’s letter also mentioned something about the vice governor post which will be left vacant after Ahok holds the position of governor.
The tough and outspoken Ahok took his oath as Jakarta vice governor in October 2012 when Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo was also sworn in as governor.
Ahok became acting governor after Jokowi stepped aside to run for the presidential election in June of this year.
As vice governor Ahok wasted no time. He immediately took a new aggressive system of selecting and promoting bureaucrats and government workers in general, which was the task Jokowi wanted him to focus on.
Ahok took swift moves to furbish up the city’s sleepy bureaucracy, which he says as having little to do with the technical capabilities of its bureaucrats, but their mentality. Many of them want to be served rather than serving, he complained.
Not surprisingly, on many occasions Ahok bluntly reprimanded district and village heads and other government agency leaders over their poor performance. He losing his temper was jubilantly reported in the press and You Tube, making him a new popular star.
In a media interview in June, shortly after becoming acting governor, the 48-year-old Ahok again stressed his move to continue improving the ineffective and inefficient bureaucracy.“The first thing we have to fix here is the bureaucracy … by testing and evaluating their performance,” he said in the interview.
And he walks the talk.
He introduced “position auctioning” method to pick qualified bureaucrats, using two basic strategies: Firstly, widely open the door for any qualified city government employees to hold any key structural posts like provincial secretary and mayoralty secretary; governor’s expert assistant; head of provincial government agencies; head of provincial government-owned hospitals; subdistrict and village chiefs. In the auction process, auction participants must pass a series of tests.
The second strategy is hold testing of all active subdistrict heads and village chiefs in the capital before deciding on whether or not they remain in their posts.
“We need to test them using standard practices in the selection of housing complex general managers,” said Ahok who once ran businesses after graduating from the technology school of Trisakti University and obtaining MBA degree in finance from Prasetya Mulia Management School, both in Jakarta.
Selection of Jakarta mayors are excluded from the auction method. Ahok said he only have to consult city councilors when appointing and replacing mayors, in accordance with existing Law on Special Capital Region of Jakarta.
Early last year Ahok and Jokowi caused widespread restlessness among the city’s bureaucrats and invited strong criticism from political opponents and commentators. That was because they removed South South Jakarta Mayor Anas Effendi from his post without prior consultation with city councilors.
He also replaced other key officials at his office who failed to perform. And he threatened to remove more bureaucrats.
However, Ahok won much praise when he strongly defended Lenteng Agung village chief Susan Jasmine Zulkifli from south Jakarta against local Muslim protesters who objected that she was a Christian. Ahok, also a Christian, argued that Susan had passed position auction exams and that the country’s constitution defends the right of any non-Moslem to serve in public office.
Achievements
Many say Ahok’s strict approaches have worked well enough. A more effective bureaucracy has helped the city government successfully implement some of their priority programs like:
The slashing of city government spending
The renovation of low-cost apartments in Marunda in North Jakarta
The introduction of advanced communication technologies at city government offices including the creation of websites and the using of You Tube for disseminating information
The moving of street vendors in the Tanah Abang thug area in Central Jakarta
The normalization of Pluit Reservoir, Ria Rio Reservoir, and Pesanggrahan River.
But, despite all the applaudable achievements, many neative comments have been directed to Ahok. They complain that he is ignorant and ignorant, not up to Indonesian cultural standards.
Among them is Ratna Sarumpaet. Anoted human rights activist, a theatrical producer and Ahok’s leading supporter, she raised people’s eyebrows recently. In a high-profile television talk show, Ratna, who claims to know Ahok personally said: “Initially, I was proud of Ahok, his firmness and honesty. But now I should say he should stop being rude and reprimanding his subordinates in front of many other people, especially when they are older than him, who may be doing their work slowly.”
For Ratna and other critics, Ahok shold better understand the difference between “being tough” and “being rude”.
The strongest words came from the hard line Islamic group called Islam Defenders Forum (FPI) and several politicians.
FPI leaders and activists, during street protest rallies in Jakarta and in media interviews, said Ahok cannot be allowed to become Jakarta governor because he is Christian of Chinese descent. And he is arrogant.
Their posters read: Reject Ahok. No Bargain”. “Ahok ! Watch Your Putrid Mouth”. They also threaten to hit him physically if he visits villages in Jakarta. (Read more: FPI Proposes Fahrurrozi Ishaq as ‘Counter Governor’ to Compete Ahok)
On Monday (10/11) Ahok said he would soon sent to letters to the Human rights Commission and the Ministry of Home Affairs to ask them to disband FPI.
Worsely, a Betawi ethnic group leader concurrently DPRD deputy speaker Abraham Lunggana or Haji Lulung said he will try hard to block Ahok from becoming Jakarta governor. The wealthy councilor says Ahok has accused him of supporting Tanah Abang vendors to refuse relocation.
Meanwhile, another DPRD deputy speaker, Muhammad Taufik who is allegedly eyeing the vice governor post, questions people’s praises of Ahok. “Has he made achievements? He is nothing,” said Taufik who is from Prabowo Subijanto’s Gerindra Party. Prabowo lost Indonesia’s presidential election to Jokowi.
Good name
Given all those criticisms and humiliating remarks, Ahok, a former member of Gerindra, will have to further prove his prowess of introducing aggressive new policies, which will pose a serious challenge to him.
In a lengthy interview with detik.com last week, Ahok said it does not really matter to him if he loses his job as governor.
“What I fear is that I do not do the right and noble things. If your good name is tarnished, all your wealth is nothing. This is a matter of history which will tell whether or not you are good,” said Ahok, who regularly reads the Bible together with his wife, Veronica Tan, and their three children.
In another interview Ahok said something about Chinese citizens running public office. “The Jakarta (gubernatorial) election was a test and we see more ethnic Chinese running for public office now. One day soon Indonesia will be ready for a non-Muslim or ethnic Chinese leader, even President.”
Being governor with aggressive new moves and big dreams of creating a better Jakarta will surely make Ahok matter a lot, not only to the Jakarta people but also the whole nation.