Jakarta Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) member Hardiyanto Kenneth assesses that the Provincial Government of DKI Jakarta has not yet succeeded in resolving the issue of tangled utility cables across various areas of the capital. The statement was made following an accident that killed a high school student due to a dangling cable in the South Jakarta area.
Kenneth emphasized that the incident cannot be treated as an ordinary traffic accident. According to him, the event that claimed the student’s life shows that oversight regarding utility infrastructure, which has the potential to endanger public safety, remains weak.
The PDI Perjuangan politician reminded that Jakarta experienced a similar case in 2023 involving Sultan Rifat Alfatih. At that time, Sultan suffered a serious neck injury after becoming entangled in a dangling cable while riding on Jalan Pangeran Antasari, South Jakarta.
According to Kenneth, this series of events shows that the issue of overhead cables has not been thoroughly resolved despite various evaluations being conducted. He referred to the situation as a long-standing problem that keeps recurring without a comprehensive resolution.
Consequently, Kenneth urged the DKI Provincial Government to conduct a total audit of the entire overhead cable network in Jakarta. A comprehensive data collection is considered vital to identifying high-risk points that could potentially cause similar accidents in the future.
In addition to the audit, he also requested the local government to impose strict sanctions on utility companies if any elements of negligence are found in their network management. According to him, public safety must be the top priority over corporate operational interests.
Kenneth also highlighted the importance of accelerating the program to move overhead cables underground. The step is deemed a long-term solution that not only improves citizen safety but also supports a more modern and orderly urban layout.
The DKI Provincial Government previously established regulations regarding the arrangement of utility networks. However, according to Kenneth, the implementation of these rules needs to be strengthened so that overlapping authority and shifting responsibilities no longer occur when incidents arise.
The tragedy that befell the high school student has now entered the public spotlight and renewed demands for the government to accelerate the overhaul of utility infrastructure in Jakarta. Various parties hope that similar incidents will not happen again and that citizens’ safety can be better guaranteed in the future.
