VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Screenshot of Jakarta Governor introducing Indonesian youngsters who work at the Jakarta MRT Phase 2A construction on Friday, February 25, 2022. (ANTARA/Instagram @aniesbaswedan/Dewa Ketut/rst) - 

Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan affirmed that Phase 2A of the Jakarta Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) project was fully conducted by Indonesian youngsters.

"A sophisticated construction project, with high complexity, is 100 percent executed by Indonesian youngsters. This is the result of education in Indonesia," Baswedan stated as quoted from his Instagram account @aniesbaswedan on Friday.

The former education and culture minister noted that youngsters working in this high-tech project were not yet born during the early stage of planning of MRT Jakarta.

"However, today, they are working on historic projects in Indonesia and especially for transportation in Jakarta," Baswedan stated.

Baswedan then introduced several youngsters, who were involved, including Rizki Shebubakar, 33.

Shebubakar is a Civil Engineering graduate from the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). He is assigned as the head of the Project Management Construction Division 2 in this project.

Shebubakar is responsible for the MRT Jakarta Phase 2A CP 201 tunnel drilling work.

The challenges that he currently faces are different from those encountered during the first phase of construction since the phase two of the MRT line passed through several cultural heritage areas, especially in the Old City, Baswedan noted.

Shebubakar and the team then invited archaeologists to discuss the project from an archaeological perspective.

"Another challenge is that he works while studying for a double degree at the University of Indonesia and IAE Grenoble," Baswedan stated.

He later introduced the rest of Shebubakar's team comprising young people in their 20s and 30s: Farhan (25), Angga (34), Adit (30), Pungki (24), and Ricky (32) all of whom graduated from Indonesian universities.

As was earlier known, the MRT development plan in Jakarta was initiated since 1985. However, at that time, the MRT project had not been declared as a national project until 2005.

The first phase of MRT Jakarta, the 16-kilometer HI roundabout to Lebak Bulus, was built in October 2013 and completed in 2018.

The first phase of the MRT Jakarta trial for the general public for free began on March 12, 2019.

Meanwhile, on February 24, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) inaugurated the launch of the single-phase 2A MRT Jakarta tunnel drilling machine.

The drilling machine will start operating to build a tunnel connecting the HI Roundabout Station and Thamrin Station as a part of Phase 2A for the HI Roundabout route to the city area.

The MRT Jakarta Phase 2A will pass seven stations: Thamrin, Monas, Harmoni, Sawah Besar, Mangga Besar, Glodok, and Kota.

After phase 2A is completed, the government had planned to continue the Phase 2B route from Kota to West Ancol//ANT