Concerning Anies Baswedan Changing Street Names In DKI Jakarta: There Are No Standard Rules, As A Result, Local Governments Can Be Arbitrary

DKI Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan when inaugurating the changes to several street names in DKI Jakarta during a ceremony at Setu Babakan, South Jakarta on Monday 20 June 2022. (Antara)

JAKARTA – The celebration of the 495th anniversary of DKI Jakarta which falls on June 22, 2022, is actually enlivened by many events. There is the Jakarta Fair, free visits to museums, free public transportation, music concerts on Tidung Island, and many more. However, all of these programs failed to resonate with the news about the name change of 22 streets in Jakarta, which was announced by Governor Anies Baswedan.

In fact, this year's Anniversary of DKI Jakarta which carries the theme "Jakarta Celebration" has a flashy slogan. The slogan was written in a mixed language of English and Indonesian, Celebrate Jakarta: Collaboration, Acceleration, and Elevation.

“This year's theme is collaboration, acceleration, elevation. Collaboration in Jakarta with the most private sector, international institutions, in this city various institutions appear. We take a collaborative approach. And the collaboration that we have done has brought progress to the people of Jakarta. Acceleration, we accelerate so that the progress and development of the city together with all these parties can be felt by the community. elevation. Jakarta as a city, Jakarta is recognized by other cities in the world," said Anies Baswedan explaining the theme of the 2022 DKI Jakarta Anniversary, in his speech at Monas on Wednesday, June 22.

One of the roads that was changed by Governor Anies Baswedan, Jl. Mpok Nori which was originally named Jl. Raya Bambu Apus in East Jakarta. (Between)

Whatever the theme, the fact that is happening in society is the excitement over the name change of 22 streets. Some agree, but some don't. The disagreement about the change in street names was based on concerns about the complexity of administrative arrangements: ID cards, family cards, driver's licenses, BPKBs, and many others.

As complained by an administrator of RT 04/RW 05 in Cililitan Village, Kramat Jati District, East Jakarta named Kamal.

"KTP changed, SIM changed, KK changed, STNK changed, BPKB changed, that's bound to change and it takes time and money, of course, to take care of that," said Kamal to VOI, Wednesday, June 22.

According to Kamal, residents often ask him about this. But Kamal said he could not answer yet, because there was no announcement before the street name change was inaugurated. The road in the Kamal area that changed was Jalan Budaya, which was changed to Jalan Entong Gendut.

Anies Baswedan Guarantee

Anies Baswedan reasoned that the change in the names of streets, areas, villages and buildings in DKI Jakarta was a tribute to the Betawi figures who had a great contribution to Jakarta and Indonesia.

"The contribution of the Betawi community in various sectors needs to be perpetuated so that it appears to us personally who have contributed and hope that it will serve as a reminder to all of us that this city has grown up with people called street names," Anies told VOI in Setu Babakan, South Jakarta on 20 June 2022.

Anies added that the public does not need to worry about difficulties in administrative matters due to changes in the names of roads, regions, villages and buildings in DKI Jakarta. According to him, the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government has coordinated with the Polda Metro Jaya, the Regional Office for the National Land Agency of DKI Jakarta Province, and other related parties.

Jl. Mampang Prapatan Raya which in 2018 was about to be renamed Jl. Great General AH Nasution by Governor Anies Baswedan. (Antara/Reno Esnir)

Coordination must be carried out as a measure to anticipate the impact of a name change on population administration documents, property ownership, and motorized vehicle ownership.

"The change in the name of this road has been discussed with the police, BPN, Dukcapil Service and gradually it can be with a new name. This is part of our effort to be able to make this change less difficult, it makes it easier," said Anies again.

Street Naming Rules

In Indonesia, until now, there are no standard rules regarding the naming of roads, regions, villages or buildings. There is no uniformity, so the rules are re-applied to each Regional Government.

Because there is no pattern of rules in naming roads, the policy becomes dependent on regional authorities, whether city representatives, regents, or governors. There are also regions that require the change of street names to be approved by the DPRD.

Currently, the granting or changing of street names in DKI Jakarta is based on the Governor's Decree Number 28 of 1999 concerning Guidelines for Determining the Names of Streets, Parks and Public Buildings in DKI Jakarta. From Chapter IV Article 4 of the regulation, there are 10 main things that the DKI Jakarta Regional Government must consider before giving a name to a road, namely:

Easily recognized by the public Using the name of the area or local environment that is already known to the public The use of the name of a hero is considered according to the nature of his heroism Does not conflict with decency and public order Does not change or change a name that is already embedded in the hearts of the community and has historical value for the area Not promotional or advertising Must be adapted to the interests, nature, and function of the roads, parks, and public buildings concerned. Use the names of roads, parks, and similar public buildings in a certain complex or environment. which is closest to Monas and or the largest arterial/collector/local road. Especially for an environment that is organized and orderly and already has a street name, the determination of the name of the road is based on real conditions in the field.

Name change socialization banner Jl. Mampang Prapatan Raya became Jl. General Besar AH Nasution was removed by officers after the plan was canceled because it was rejected by the community in 2018. (Dok. Kelurahan Pejaten Barat)

Since serving as the Governor of DKI Jakarta in 2017, Anies Baswedan has planned to change the name of the roads in his area. One of them is the change in the name of the HR Rasuna Said (Mampang Prapatan) canal to the meeting of Warung Buncit and TB Simatupang in South Jakarta. In 2018, Anies changed the name of the street which was originally Mampang Prapatan Raya to AH. Nasution.

However, the plan was met with opposition, one of which was from the historian JJ Rizal.

“If Governor Anies supports changing the name of the street, it is regrettable. AH Nasution is one of the national heroes. It is an honor to make AH Nasution a street name. However, this will be a problem if the name is pinned on a road that already has a name," Rizal said as quoted by Kompas.com, January 31, 2018.

“Mampang refers to the name of the tree as a marker of the importance of maintaining green areas. Warung Buncit refers to pluralism because that's the name of a Betawi village, but it refers to a Chinese shop," Rizal continued.

The plan to change the names of Mampang Prapatan Raya and Warung Buncit streets to AH Nasution was finally cancelled. Socialization banners that had been installed were also removed. This case is certainly very different from the change in street names in DKI Jakarta which was announced last June 22, because this time Anies Baswedan did not implement socialization to the public ahead of time.