By: Alif Fikri )*
The whole community should appreciate the completion of the construction of the trans-Sulawesi railway line, which is clear evidence of President Jokowi’s strong commitment to creating equitable development in all regions in Indonesia so that it is not just Java-centric.
The President of the Republic of Indonesia (RI), Joko Widodo has completed the entire construction of a rail transportation project in Sulawesi. The nation’s new train runs for the first time in the region. Sulawesi, which so far has never had transportation in the form of a train, but in the era of Jokowi’s leadership can now feel that it has this means of transportation.
The Head of Operations and Services for the Trans Sulawesi Railway (KA), Rizqi Prasetyo, revealed that according to the directions given by President Jokowi regarding the construction of the railway, he stated that in Sulawesi his party had indeed prepared a grand design.
In the grand design, he stated that the trans Sulawesi train is planned to be able to connect Makassar City to Manado City, so that all people who want to travel, especially going to these cities, now don’t have to worry anymore because there are new transportation facilities.
Rizqi Prasetyo added that the planning for the construction of the trans-Sulawesi railway line was actually not something that was done without a well-thought-out plan. The reason is, all levels of government have even started carrying out the execution of the development since 2015.
He revealed that in 2015 a groundbreaking had begun which was carried out directly by President Joko Widodo and his related staff to be able to build all railway lines in Sulawesi as soon as possible, especially across the City of Makassar to the City of Parepare.
This is not just a discourse carried out by the government without any real action, now all the planning that has started since 2015, in South Sulawesi itself has now borne fruit with the construction of approximately 110 km of railroad tracks stretching from Maros Regency to with the border of Barru Regency.
The Head of Operations and Services for Trans Sulawesi Railways explained that the rail line that has started operating is passenger transport which has previously gone through a number of limited trials, namely on the Garongkong to Mangilu route .
For information, the railroad tracks in Sulawesi have a width of 1435 mm, which is a much larger size when compared to the existing railroads on the island of Java. So with wider rails like this, it will also be capable of a larger capacity
Regarding how the entire project for the construction of transportation facilities in the form of a railroad in Sulawesi was completed by President Jokowi, not a few of the people then tried together what it was like to ride the new train owned by Sulawesi.
When they tried to ride it, they gave a very positive response related to how successful the seventh RI President was in building infrastructure in the form of rail transportation facilities in Sulawesi and even making the people very proud and happy.
The community is very happy because they consider that now with the existence of rail transportation facilities in Sulawesi, all the access that the community needs can be much easier. Apart from that, now they are finally able to feel the sensation of riding a train, without having to go all the way to Java Island first like never before.
The reason is, before the people of Sulawesi officially had their own means of rail transportation like today, there were some among the residents who had to be willing to go to Java Island first just to be able to experience how to ride a train. This is also clear evidence that so far there is still a development gap in Indonesia.
During the era of President Joko Widodo’s leadership, all development inequalities, especially regarding infrastructure in all regions in the country, slowly became evenly distributed so that all people in Indonesia really felt the same opportunities and were given the same facilities as people in other regions in Indonesia.
It was even stated that the route that the Trans Sulawesi Railway would pass was not only for residents, which would only connect Makassar City and Manado City. However, in the future there will also be a railroad track that will be directly connected to the cement factory.
Of course, with the effort to connect the railroad lines and even to the cement factory, it is hoped that it can further help move the wheels of the economy, especially in Sulawesi, so that it will be much more improved in the future.
All of these things deserve to be appreciated by all Indonesian people, especially for residents in Sulawesi because of President Jokowi’s strong commitment to truly be able to create equitable development in Indonesia.
)* The author is a contributor to the Nusa Bangsa Institute
