KUALA LUMPUR: IT is time for Malaysia and Indonesia to work together and overcome the annual haze problem instead of playing the blame game.
A single body, answerable directly to the prime minister and president of both nations respectively, must be formed to look into the root cause of the issue, with detailed weekly reports and updates on hand.
Former Jakarta vice-governor Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno said the body should work closely with the private sector and adopt the latest technology in assessing the situation, including drones and satellite imaging.
“Apart from this, leaders of both nations need to come up with severe penalties, including economic punishments, to be imposed against those found responsible.
“We can also work closely with other nations, including Singapore and Thailand, to put an end to this annual phenomenon,” he said in an interview with the New Straits Times at the end of the Asean Business Club dialogue on “Indonesia’s Political Economy Outlook in Asean” recently.
Sandiaga was elected Jakarta’s vice-governor and served from October 2017 to August 2018.
He was also Indonesia’s vice-presidential candidate in this year’s election.
He is one of Indonesia’s most prominent young entrepreneurs and plays an active role in the Indonesian business community.
His achievements include being the co-founder of PT Saratoga Investama Sedaya Tbk, which was the first and the biggest publicly listed active investment company in Indonesia, which he served as its president director from 2004 to 2015.
He led the investment firm to a solid track record of profitable investments across key sectors of the Indonesian economy.
“Haze is a very serious problem and it is choking and killing people.
“Many have died due to the haze and children, too, have been suffering because of this.
“A concerted effort is crucial. It must be led by the governments from both nations and strongly supported by the private sector.”
Sandiaga said social media platforms should also be employed to ensure that investigations were thorough and transparent.
Sandiaga, who is also fondly known as Sandi, said apart from severely affecting people’s health and wellbeing, the haze had also affected the economy.
“Countries lose out on tourism revenue arrivals as people don’t want to visit a country blanketed in a thick haze.
“Tourism is a huge industry here in Asia. It is a sector where we can work on together for our mutual benefit. Asia is unique and authentic.”
He believed that Asian nations could work together to produce tourism products that were “better than the rest of the world”.
“We must get tourists to stay longer. For example, a tourist spends an average of 10 days in Turkey, but only two days in Jakarta and three in Bali.
“Together, we can provide better connectivity (among nations), with attractive tourism packages and other attractions to encourage tourists to spend more time here.”
Earlier during the dialogue, Sandiaga touched on the Indonesian capital’s move from Jakarta to Kalimantan.
“This issue has cropped up since the time of the first Indonesian president.
“Now, Jokowi (Indonesian president Joko Widodo) wants it to be his legacy and has placed this as a high priority.”
He said analysts were currently coming up with an economic model to facilitate the move by taking into account the economic impact, costs and other factors.
“Tonnes of data are needed before we are good to move. Kalimantan is not near … it’s a two-hour flight from Jakarta.
He said since the relocation was announced, a number of socio-economic repercussions had already taken place in the country.
“For one, property prices in Jakarta have plunged to about 10 to 15 per cent.
“There are still numerous uncertainties. The move has not even been budgeted for 2019 or 2020 yet,” he said.
On the street protests in Jakarta, Sandiaga said people had made clear of their demands to the government.
It was reported that thousands of students in Indonesia had taken to the streets to protest a draft criminal code that would, among others, outlaw extramarital sex, as well as a controversial new law that could weaken the nation’s anti-corruption body.
“During my visits to over a thousand constituencies, it was obvious what the people want. They want job security and better economic growth.
“They object strongly to the rising cost of living and want better quality jobs for themselves.
“The youth want harsher penalties and an end to corruption. Instead, it seems to be the other way around.
“If they do not get this, it is obvious the protests are not going to end. Their voices will probably grow stronger and louder.”
Sandiaga, who has since taken a break from active politics, said for the last five years, the Indonesian government had focused on improving infrastructure, but had yet to provide the right jobs for the people.
“What we want now is a healthy socio-economic climate with a priority on better job creation.
“I strongly believe in partnerships between the public and private sectors and by working together, we can certainly bridge gaps.
“Human capital is a country’s greatest asset and by investing more on this, I am confident that we (Indonesia) will achieve our target of becoming the seventh-largest economy in the world by 2030,” he said.
Asked why he opted to leave the business world to join politics, he said: “Well, in business, we are trained to reduce risks and remove uncertainties.
But, in politics, it is much more exciting to have uncertainties.
“Also, in business, we are trained to deliver what we promise.
“But in politics, we promise something during breakfast and for lunch, we promise something different.”
When asked about his future in politics, Sandiaga said he was keen to take a long break, although he said there had been numerous calls for his return.
“As a politician, I realised people do not want to listen to long, boring speeches. These days, it is seven minutes at the most.
“Three minutes for introductions, four minutes for policy and 10 minutes for selfies.
“If you take selfies with the people, you have a 66.6 per cent chance that they will vote for you.”
During the dialogue, Sandiaga also addressed numerous issues raised by participants relating to bilateral trade, bureaucracy and others. The dialogue was moderated by prominent corporate figure Tan Sri Dr Mohd Munir Abdul Majid, who, among others, chairs Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd and the Veto Committee.