Surabaya installs first woman mayor

Agnes S. Jayakarna and Indra Harsaputra, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya | Wed, 09/29/2010 9:13 AM

Tri Rismaharini was installed as Surabaya’s Mayor by East Java Governor Soekarwo on Tuesday and became the first woman to lead the country’s second largest city.

New mayor Tri Rismaharini (L) and
vice mayor Bambang Dwi (Photo: Surabaya Post)

Tri Rismaharini and Bambang Dwi won Surabaya’s mayoral race in August, after the Constitutional Court ordered a repeat of June’s election, citing massive and systemic voting offenses.

Risma’s ticket, which was backed by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), won 40.8 percent of the vote in the repeat election, ahead of Arif Afandi and Adies Kadir, who secured 36.5 percent. Risma’s campaign also won the June polls.

Outside the installation ceremony at the Surabaya Legislative Council building, students staged a rally demanding Risma uphold her promises, such as increasing the city’s green space.

The ceremony was attended by Arif, city councilors, community leaders and representatives from the Japanese and French consulates.

Speaking at the ceremony, Soekarwo told the new administration to fulfill their campaign promises and said they must maintain harmony with all parties and support each other for a successful five-year leadership.

“Otherwise, programs will be left unfinished and development not implemented as well as it can be,” he said.

The governor told Risma to base her policies on the public interest. Slightly misleading policies could turn families deemed “almost poor” into “poor” families, he added.

City Legislative Council Speaker Wishnu Wardhana said he hoped the new administration would make Surabaya a better city through humane and planned development programs.

“There is much work awaiting the new mayor and deputy mayor, such as in the fields of education, health and infrastructure,” he said.

Wishnu said development of the city’s eastern ring road, which connected Suramadu Bridge and Juanda International Airport, should be finished quickly to accelerate the city’s economy.

During the campaign, Risma promised to develop Surabaya through clean water distribution, controlling flooding through open space management, subsidizing housing for the poor and developing mass transportation.

Risma, who previously led the city’s Cleanliness Agency and its Development Planning Agency, has been praised for making Surabaya a greener city through reforestation programs and building several new parks in the city. She also vowed to involve Surabayans in the creation of a clean and healthy environment.

The most daunting task for the mayor is eradicating poverty for the city’s 110,117 economically poor families, which include 12,558 extremely poor, 47,065 poor and 50,494 almost poor families.