Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama is known for his occasional bursts of rage (like that time he repeatedly said “shit” on live television) just as much as for his no-nonsense leadership style. But would he really shoot someone?
Ahok actually suggested as much when he said he was angry that the city’s civil servants had only managed to safety-certify 400 kaki lima street vendors (PKL) even though the governor started the initiative a long time ago.
“I’ve been talking about [the safety certification] since 2013. If people say I’m impatient, I’m actually very patient. How come there are only a few hundred PKLs that are registered? There should’ve been hundreds of thousands by now,” Ahok said, as quoted by Kompas.
“I’m actually upset. When I’m angry, I can shoot people.”
Now of course, Ahok may have been speaking hyperbolically to describe his displeasure towards the work (or lack thereof) of his civil servants, particularly those in the city’s Department of Cooperatives, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Trade, which handles the PKL initiative.
But if Ahok actually feels the need to shoot people, we’d suggest that he take it out on some targets at a shooting range (we hear there are a couple of decent ones in Senayan). After all, we need Ahok to lead the city and sort out those inept civil servants instead of serving time behind bars.
