After No Longer Has The Status Of A Special Capital Region, Is The Jakarta Regional Head Election Still Hot?

The 2017 DKI Jakarta Pilkada which took place was exciting and hot. (Between/M Agung Rajasa)

JAKARTA - Jakarta is no longer the capital city of Indonesia. But the position of the Governor of Jakarta is still lucrative, so it is contested by a row of important figures in the country.

The status of the Special Capital City or DKI is no longer attached to Jakarta after the DPR ratified the Draft Law on the Special Region of Jakarta (RUU DKJ) as a law during a plenary session of the DPR which was held by the Parliament Complex, Senayan, Jakarta, March 28, 2024.

The DKJ Law was issued in line with the presence of the Law on the State Capital (IKN) of the Archipelago which became the legal basis for the transfer of the capital city of Indonesia from Jakarta to the East Kalimantan region.

One of the important points is the election for the Governor of Jakarta which had caused a commotion in the community.

Anies Baswedan was still the Governor of DKI Jakarta. Anies was a speaker at a viral forum titled Dialogue Between C40 Mayors and UN Secretary General-Advancing Carbon Neutrality and Resilent Recovery for Cities and Nations, on April 16, 2021. (X/@aniesbaswedan)

When it appeared as a DKJ Bill which was an initiative of the DPR, the draft in it had caused a stir throughout Indonesia because the Governor of Jakarta would be appointed by the president when he was no longer DKI.

However, this provision was not realized after the government emphasized that Jakarta's supreme leader must still be elected by the people democratically and directly.

The DKJ Governor's Decree is still chosen by Jakarta residents in 10 Paragraph (1) of the DKJ Law, which reads: "The Government of the Special Region of Jakarta is led by one Governor assisted by one Deputy Governor who was directly elected through the general election of Regional Heads and Deputy Regional Heads".

With a status that is no longer DKI, will the election for the Governor of Jakarta remain attractive?

The public may still remember when a large billboard featured the figure of Ridwan Kamil (RK) earlier this year. In the billboard, it clearly states OTW Jakarta which was later linked by the public as a hard code towards the Jakarta Pilkada.

Interestingly, in the midst of a commotion among the community about Ridwan Kamil's billboards to Jakarta, the General Treasurer of the National Democratic Party (Nasdem) Ahmad Sahroni gave a response. He uploaded a photo of a billboard that reads "From Tanjung Priok to Jakarta" on his personal Instagram.

When he realized that his billboards had drawn the spotlight of a number of circles, Ridwan Kamil provided clarification. He emphasized that the billboard was part of a marketing strategy ahead of the launch of the care skin product which was held in Jakarta.

Apart from the RK billboards, which are only marketing strategies, the issue of the Jakarta Pilkada still attracts public attention. Apart from the former Governor of West Java, a number of names are predicted to run in the Jakarta gubernatorial election in the 2024 Pilkada which will be held on November 27.

These names include Ahmad Sahroni, a member of the DPR from the PKS faction, Mardani Ali Sera, Chairman of the DKI Jakarta Golkar Party DPD Ahmed Zaki, Deputy Head of Golkar Erwin Aksa, Sohibul Iman, and Khoirudin. The last two names are PKS politicians. Then it was discovered that the names that were later linked to the Jakarta Pilkada were Anies Baswedan, Basuki Tjahaya Purnama and PSI General Chair and President Joko Widodo's youngest son, Kaesang Pangarep.

Populi Center political analyst, Usep S. Ahyar believes Jakarta will still be considered important even though its status is not the nation's capital. Usep said, Jakarta is still a magnet because it has wider power than other areas that are still blocked by district/city autonomy, while Jakarta is able to handle provinces and cities simultaneously.

"The governor of Jakarta has different powers or powers compared to governors in other areas. It will be more effective. So holding a direct executive without any other power barriers under him," said Usep.

With all its strengths, Usep believes that Jakarta will not lose its attractiveness in terms of politics and the economy. Especially considering that the Jakarta APBD is the largest in Indonesia and has a strategic office.

"So it is still very strategic and will remain a stepping stone for national figures [to the stage]. I think it is still quite interesting, especially around big cities," said Usep.

The transfer of the capital city from Jakarta to IKN Nusantara in East Kalimantan is predicted not to be direct, but gradually. This means that Jakarta's position as the center of economy and politics is not easily replaced even though the center of government goes to IKN Nusantara.

"In addition, problems are also challenging so that if you can complete Jakarta for the better, I think it will be a point in itself for anyone who leads Jakarta," Usep explained.

Not much different from Usep, political socio-political analyst Musfi Romdoni also has a similar opinion. He believes that Jakarta will remain an important area in the struggle for the governor's seat, because until now it is still the center of the economy and government.

"As long as Jakarta is still the center of the economy and the government on a de facto basis, during that time the struggle for the seat of the Governor of Jakarta has become very sexy and important," said Musfi.

He predicted it would take quite a while to make the Jakarta gubernatorial election no longer considered sexy. This will only happen if the IKN development goes smoothly as planned. Musfi believes that the presence of IKN will not interfere with Jakarta's position as a center of gravity and politics.

"Finally, we see that political elites find it difficult to move on from Jakarta. However, all facilities are in Jakarta. Of course it is difficult to imagine the comfort being abandoned by moving to IKN. The proof is that the council members refused to move by proposing Jakarta as the center of legislation," he concluded.