Persija Jakarta Football Team Needs a Stadium, Joko Says

Lenny Tristia Tambun

Persija Jakarta needs their own football stadium in the capital, governor Joko Widodo announced on Tuesday, floating the idea of constructing a new Rp 1.5 trillion ($156 million) stadium.

“How come the football club of a big city like [Jakarta] doesn’t have its own stadium?” he asked. “Where have they practiced then? We want to give Persija the same benefits enjoyed by other football clubs in other regions and other countries.”

The stadium, aside from hosting regular Persija practices, could also bring international football matches to Jakarta, Joko said.

The governor admitted that the costly stadium might not be constructed for several years.

Deputy Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama said the city administration will begin searching for a possible location for the new stadium.

The Urban Poor Consortium said they were fine with the construction of a new stadium as long as Joko continued to pay attention to capital’s poor.

“I’ve seen that Jokowi and Basuki are moving quickly to address issues with poverty and slum areas in Jakarta. As long as they keep paying attention on these matters, it should be okay to move on with the stadium plan,” said Wardah Hafiz, coordinator of non-governmental organization.

Persija Jakarta’s old stadium in Menteng, Central Jakarta. was
demolished six years ago. Menteng Park now lies in the lot that once
held the football stadium.