There Is Still Time for Mediation
JAKARTA, KOMPAS – The Supreme Court\'s decision to grant cessation and to stop the privatization of potable water in DKI Jakarta has not yet been addressed by local government and private parties.
It is hoped the case does not have to be settled through arbitration.
If the scenario, following the Supreme Court verdict, involves the annulment of the partnership agreement between city-owned water operator PAM Jaya and PT Aetra Air Jakarta along with PT PAM Lyonnaise Jaya (Palyja) before the contract ends in 2023, then there is a risk of private parties filling a lawsuit to the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA).
Aetra has exclusive rights to manage and distribute clean water in the eastern part of Jakarta, while Palyja has the same right in the west of Jakarta. The contract of both companies with PAM Jaya runs from 1998 until 2023.
“If the private companies are deemed to be at fault, they can say to the Arbitration Court that PAM Jaya or the regional administration and the central government is also at fault because they did not provide adequate raw water and made it difficult to add or replace pipes,” said Firdaus Ali, an Environmental Engineering lecturer at University of Indonesia’s Civil Engineering department on Wednesday.
The Supreme Court verdict document states that one of the reasons the plaintiff cited to demand the privatization of potable water in Jakarta be stopped was that because under the management of private water operators from 1998 to 2011, only 62 percent of Jakarta had received water services. The privatization of water was deemed to have failed to fulfill the people’s right.
The problem is that the inability to reach 100 percent service coverage has also been caused by a lack of raw water supply. According to Firdaus, there has been no addition to the supply of raw water for Jakarta in the last 20 years. Furthermore, Aetra and Palyja have often found it difficult to obtain permits for pipe network expansion or for the replacement of old pipes.
Therefore, he recommended that the government mediate between the parties involved. However, he also warned the government should be ready for the possibility of facing an arbitration suit.
Ask for time
Separately, PAM Jaya president director Erlan Hidayat asked the public to give his company some time to respond to the Supreme Court verdict. “The case in question is a case that started in 2014, it is quite a long time ago and it is highly possible to make a mistake if we rush to conclusions,” he said.
PAM Jaya’s legal department is studying the verdict. He assured that the stance and position of PAM Jaya would reflect the stance of the provincial administration as the owner of the city-owned enterprise.
Meanwhile, Aetra Corporation and Customer Communication Manager Astriena Veracia said that the company was not yet able to comment about the Supreme Court verdict, as instructions had not be given by the directors.
The same response was given by PT Palyja. “We are waiting for coordination from PAM Jaya regarding their decision,” said PT Palyja spokesperson Lydia Astriningworo.
When asked specifically about the matter, Jakarta Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat stressed that he did not know much about the Supreme Court verdict as yet. “I don’t know the letter from the MA (Supreme Court), I can’t look into it yet. The legal bureau is still looking into it,” said Djarot, who is set to step down from his position as governor in a few days.
Because he does not know the content of the official letter, Djarot said he could not explain the effect of the Supreme Court verdict on clean water services for the public. However, he asked that the city’s clean water service not be disrupted.
Evaluation
Jakarta legislative council member Abraham Lunggana said that the Jakarta administration must carry out the Supreme Court verdict, which had approved the suit filed by the people of the city so that the policy of potable water privatization in Jakarta was stopped. However, he said he would wait for the position of the executive after evaluating PT PAM Jaya’s partnership and the MoU with Palyja and Aetra.
“PT PAM Jaya’s contracts with private parties need to be evaluated. However, we firstly need to know the points of the verdict,” Lunggana said.
Haratua Purba, head of the Legal Aid Sub-Department at the city’s Legal Bureau said his department was currently sending an official memo to the governor. The official memo was made to report the Supreme Court verdict in more detail. Once it is received, the governor will respond to the letter.
Haratua said he could not say what legal measure the governor would take. “The letter is already with the bureau chief,” he said.
(HLN/JOG/DEA)