Few would have expected it, but Jakarta’s infamous Alexis Hotel, widely believed to be a hotbed of high-class prostitution, became a point of contention during the first Jakarta gubernatorial debate on Friday.
Alexis, which is located near Ancol in North Jakarta is one of the places on gubernatorial candidate Anies Baswedan’s list to be shut down as part of his war on vice in Jakarta if elected governor.
During the debate, Anies criticized incumbent Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama for only focusing on getting rid of the problem of prostitution and drugs at the street level (such as the Kalijodo evictions) while ignoring high-class establishments like Alexis. (Ahok countered by saying his administration has already shut down two infamous nightlife establishments, Stadium and Milles, and questioned Anies’ commitment to drug eradication after he rejected the National Narcotics Agency’s proposal to educate children about drugs while he was Education Minister.)
Nevertheless, Anies reiterated his stance against Alexis, saying that it only remains open because the current administration turns a blind eye to it.
“Yes [we’ll shut it down]. Regardless of how hard we work [to better the city], the problem of drugs is ignored. Drugs can destroy everything,” Anies said on Saturday, as quoted by Kompas.
However, the question remains – would Anies or any governor have the guts to shut down Alexis, considering the powerful underworld figures who are widely rumored to own and protect the infamous establishment?
