Electricity crisis. How dire is the consequences?

Some provinces of Indonesia are experiencing electricity shortage at the moment. The long postponed 10000 MW power generator project has not been kick-started, millions of household across the archipelago are not using electricity efficiently and corruption is rampant in the National Electricity Company (PLN). Thus, PLN introduces scheduled electricity breakdown for all.

As a result, manufacturing industries are suffering from millions of dollars losses. In recent case, Daihatsu plant in Jakarta reported that 10 cars which were being assembled at the time of the breakdown, were not functioning properly; they became a mountain of scrap metal. This incident worries domestic and foreign investors who want to expand their business here. Moreover, domestic textile factories are complaining to the government that electricity shortage will put them at the disadvantage side in global market for they have to pay penalty when unable to ship on time.

In addition to that, electricity shortage prevents foreign investors to invest their money. They prefer to invest in countries which have better infrastructure for they want factories to give maximum output. Therefore, with ailing infrastructure and poor domestic investment, there is no enough job opportunity for Indonesia’s 60 millions productive workforce, which contributes to the increasing numbers of employment over the years.

As this country is becoming more relied to tax than ever, unemployment means unexploited potential source of income. With limited budget to build and revitalized infrastructure, infrastructure growth will not balance the demand for industrialisation. Moreover, unemployment will lead to high crime rate in cities which will prevent investors to venture because of safely reason. Hence, the loss is exponential.

In conclusion, the crisis will definitely be a serious problem for further economic development and social cohesion. The widening income gap will cause dissatisfaction amongst people and radicalisation may triumph. Something has to be done immediately.

Immature democracy

(In a news programme this afternoon, it was reported that a group of people held a protest in a golf course in Bandung. The villagers were not happy with the developer because it closed the main access road to their village and replaced it with a narrow muddy path. The villagers pulled out the grass and the shrubs nearby. Moreover, they tried to break down the fence between their village and the golf course.)

This violence scene is not uncommon in every protests in Indonesia, ranging from littering to burning of property. Recently, a group of students in Maluku were taken into custody for burning the picture of the president.

The spirit of local democracy is so high after the downfall of the late then president Soeharto. In his era, the new order, any public showing of resentment were banned. Those who were too vocal would be labeled as the enemy of the state, and some were even kidnapped and their whereabouts are not known until today. No one dared to voice out against the government and it's policies. Thus, when the law governing subversive behaviour was abolished, people tried to express themselves in the way they want. The May 98 tragedy, which involved burning, looting and raping, was one dark scene picturing how unruly a protest could be.

Back to the golf course incident, the crowd refused to leave and instead, devastated the field. They put off the flag pole and broke it. They pulled out a tree and dragged it all along the green area, leaving the grass in a miserable state. They thought that by destroying the developer's property, they would get what they want, a smooth wide road. In fact, I do think that the developer will not fulfill their wish as the money allocated for the road will be used to repair the golf course.

I sometimes do think that protesters in other country such as Thailand were more civilized. When the yellow shirt seized the Suvarnabhumi airport, there was no litter left. The area was clean and in good condition.

I talked to a man on my way back to Bandung from Soekarno-Hatta airport. He explained his experience in Manila. In there, he said, the protestors were in order and when they left the park where they gathered, the flowers were still there, alive.