Headline: IKN‘s Next Chapter: Key Figures Depart, New Leaders Emerge as Prabowo Takes Helm
Article:
In a significant development, the building of the Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN), a key project of President Joko Widodo‘s (Jokowi) administration, is progressing swiftly. By 2024, several infrastructure projects, including the Bendungan Sepaku dam, SPAM Sepaku, the 3A and 3B toll road segments, IKN airport, Istana Garuda and Istana Negara IKN, and the Jembatan Pulau Balang bridge connecting IKN and Balikpapan, are poised to be completed.
However, in a surprise move, Bambang Susantono and Dhony Rahajoe, respectively the head and deputy head of the IKN authority (OIKN), have stepped down from their positions, as announced on June 3, 2024. This decision came just before the planned national Independence Day celebrations in IKN.
Jokowi attributed their departure to personal reasons. Bambang, in a message shared at an OIKN meeting on May 27, 2024, and later corroborated by deputy Mohammed Ali Berawi, expressed no regrets about serving with his colleagues, praising them as "outstanding individuals." Dhony, on the other hand, revealed that he had been planning to step down since 2023 and had discussed this with Jokowi, with the final decision coming in early June through a presidential decree.
Following their departure, Jokowi appointed Basuki Hadimuljono, then Minister of Public Works and Housing, as the acting head of the OIKN, with Raja Juli Antoni, then deputy minister of agrarian affairs and spatial planning, serving as acting deputy head. After Prabowo Subianto’s inauguration as the new president, Basuki was officially appointed as the head of the OIKN on November 5, 2024, while Raja Juli Antoni took over as the Minister of Forestry in the new cabinet.
Upon assuming his new role, Basuki shared that Prabowo had urged him to swiftly carry out his duties, to which Basuki promptly responded, "I’m ready for your orders, sir."
Next: What does the future hold for IKN under President Prabowo? Read on to find out.