Tanah Abang is an area known for its perpetual traffic caused by illegal street vendors and parking, both of which are supposedly controlled by crime bosses such as Jakarta City Council member Haji Lulung.
As such, Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama has often tried to bring order to the chaotic area, with mixed results. However, this time he says he is ready to seriously crack down on illegal activities in the area in the run up to Ramadan, promising severe consequences for anybody found breaking the law.
“I’ve asked the Transportation Agency to stop the illegal parking. As for [illegal] vendors, we will seized their goods, we have already asked the mayor to make it so,” Ahok told Merdeka today.
Ahok said the government would perform regular raid in the area during Ramadan. He said if they find any street vendors illegally working the street of Tanah Abang, they would regret it.
“Their goods will be seized and not be returned. To make sure they are not returned, we will simply destroy them,” Ahok said.
Despite his otherwise tough talk, Ahok did tell his staff to refrain from violence against street vendors and illegal parking thugs in Tanah Abang. But he said there will be officers posted there all the time to make sure the rules are being enforced.
