The visit to East Kalimantan was very packed with interview schedules as Wda hired a fixer to set the meetings with all local officials.
On the day of our arrival in Balikpapan, we had a late lunch at Ocean's Resto, with view facing Balikpapan Bay. It was our driver who took us there, perhaps he thought we wanted to eat at a fancy place. IMHO, the foods in this restaurant are not that special and overpriced, most likely because it sells the view to the sea horizon, which is dotted with vessels.
Then we had a brief tour around Balikpapan, perhaps we finished it in around 1 hour. Our driver took us to Balikpapan Super Block (BSB), which consists of mall, apartment, clinic and office. My jaw dropped at the size of the place as it reminds me of the Mall Kelapa Gading complex. I mean, if it is in Jakarta, it would have been a normal sight. The mall houses various restaurants that are also available in Jakarta. I was trying to find a restaurant that is more local, but there was not any.
After that we had a cup of coffee and affogato at Dialog Cafe, as well as a bowl of rujak. Balikpapan has many cafes that look like this cafe, with modern and minimalist design. The coffee here is seriously prepared.
The next day, we went to North Penajam Paser regency, which would be the location of the new capital. There are two ways to reach the area of the new capital from Balikpapan: (1) by road; and (2) by ferry boat. For the trip there, we took the first option. It was around 3-4 hours of car drive.
Our fixer came to the hotel and we went out just after breakfast. I was still a bit overwhelmed by the previous day's trip, in which I had to leave home after midnight to catch the rescheduled flight in advance, so I slept in most part of the ride.
The first appointment was with the Sepaku district head. The officers in the district office were very friendly and welcoming us with enthusiasm. They were thrilled to be selected as the new capital as it meant more development in the district.
Greetings from the new capital-to-be. Isn't it happenstance that the name of the road is Negara (which means The State)?
After wrapping the interview, we went to the Sepaku Semoi Dam construction site, which is just a few hundreds of meters away. The dam had been planned way before there was a discourse on the new capital, it was aimed to provide raw water for the people and the industries around the area.
When we got to the gate, we were turned down by the project manager. Our fixer said that although we received permission from the district head during the interview, the project manager said we still had to obtain permission from the Public Works and Housing Agency. I advised Wda to step out of the car to persuade the project manager. The project manager came to the car and he probably felt sorry for us, because he saw me with my neck pillow and my face definitely looked tired. He gave us the phone number of his supervisor and asked us to contact the number for permission. His boss quickly responded and told us that we were allowed to have a look around.
From the dam site, we went to the lookout tower, the zero point, and the helipad, all located in the industrial plant forest managed by PT ITCI, which is owned by one of Prabowo Subianto's relatives (?) (cmiiw). Almost all trees in the area are either acacia or eucalyptus, planted for 7-8 years and then harvested for the paper and pulp mills.
The environmentalists have voiced concerns on the relocation of the capital, saying that it would destroy the forest. Well, the bitter truth is the forest is not there anymore, all I could see was industrial plants. However, the new capital will reportedly span at around 250,000 hectares, and since Samboja's orangutan preservation area is nearby, the concerns are valid.
View from the lookout tower
View from the helipad
This is actually the geodetic point, but people call it the zero point of the new capital.
A closer look on the little plaque.
We met several officers of the plantation forest management company and they escorted us to all of those points above. We also passed several cars that carried people who were coming to see the points. I jokingly told one of the officers that it felt like a tourism site. He seriously replied that there had been rising interest to see the points and they decided to be open to public. They really wanted the new capital initiative to be a success and they wanted to support it in any way they could.
We had two other appointments in Sepaku district. One was with the indigenous community head, and the other was with the North Penajam Paser deputy regent Hamdan. Why not interviewing the regent? Well, the regent was detained by the Corruption Eradication Commission shortly before our arrival *facepalm*. This is a serious warning as the regency would be host to the new capital.
Most officials are defensive when journalists asked about corruption. Instead of being angry to the journalists, they could turn the table simply by reiterating their commitment to corruption eradication and showing the investors that they would work hard to prove it.
For our trip back to Balikpapan City, we used the second route option: the ferry boat ride.
We kept our masks on and even maintained distance with each other :)
We touched down Balikpapan at around 9 pm. To close the day, we had...*drum rolls*...Soto Lamongan for dinner. Wda and I laughed so hard at the idea of having Soto Lamongan, a dish that is a signature to Lamongan, East Java, in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan.
However, most residents of Kalimantan are Javanese and Bugis of Sulawesi, while the indigenous people probably only comprise 10 percent of total population. The Javanese came through the transmigration program back in President Soeharto era, while the Bugis people, the strong seamen tribe of the nation, landed in Kalimantan for trade purposes.
Oh dear, the post is already this long and it's just one day. I guess, I will wrap this here. See you on part 3.
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