Basuki Tjahaja Purnama
| Basuki Tjahaja Purnama 鍾萬學[1] | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 17th Governor of Jakarta | |
|
Assumed office 19 November 2014 Acting: 1 June–22 July 2014 and 16 October–18 November 2014 | |
| President | Joko Widodo |
| Deputy | Djarot Saiful Hidayat |
| Preceded by | Joko Widodo |
| Vice Governor of Jakarta | |
|
In office 15 October 2012 – 19 November 2014 | |
| Governor | Joko Widodo |
| Preceded by | Prijanto |
| Succeeded by | Djarot Saiful Hidayat |
| 3rd Regent of East Belitung | |
|
In office 3 August 2005 – 22 December 2006 | |
| Deputy | Khairul Efendi |
| Preceded by | Usman Saleh |
| Succeeded by | Khairul Efendi |
| Member of the Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat | |
|
In office 1 October 2009 – 26 April 2012 | |
| Constituency | Bangka Belitung |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Basuki Tjahaja Purnama 29 June 1966 Manggar, Belitung, Indonesia |
| Political party |
Independent (September 2014–present) Gerindra (2012–2014) Golkar (2008–2012) |
| Spouse(s) | Veronica Tan |
| Relations |
Indra Tjahaja Purnama (father) Buniarti Ningsih (mother) |
| Children |
Nicholas Sean Purnama Nathania Daud Albeenner |
| Alma mater |
Trisakti University STIE Prasetiya Mulya |
| Profession | Politician |
| Religion | Protestantism |
| Website | ahok.org |
Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (EYD: Basuki Cahaya Purnama, Chinese: 鍾萬學; Tjung Ban Hok; pinyin: Zhōng Wànxué; born June 29, 1966) is an Indonesian politician serving as the 17th Governor of Jakarta since November 14, 2014. Basuki was inaugurated by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on November 18, 2014.[2] He was a legislator in the Indonesian People's Representative Council and Regent of East Belitung.[3] He is also known by his Hakka Chinese nickname, Ahok (Chinese: 阿學).
Basuki was also a Komisi II House of Representatives member for the 2009-2014 office term. However, he resigned from the position in 2012 to run for Lieutenant Governor Jakarta governor election.
Basuki is the second Chinese, and also second Christian governor of Jakarta, following Henk Ngantung, who was governor during the period 1964-65.[4][5]
Personal life
Early life
Basuki was born on 29 June 1966 and grew up in Manggar, East Belitung. He is the first son of Buniarti Ningsih (Boen Nen Tjauw) and the late Indra Tjahaja Purnama (Tjoeng Kiem Nam).[6] Basuki has three siblings, Basuri Tjahaja Purnama, Fifi Lety, and Harry Basuki.
Education
Basuki attended Trisakti University majoring in Mineral Resources & Technology. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Geological Engineering in 1989 and returned to his hometown in Belitung to build a company which dealt in mining contracts.
After two years working in the company, he decided to pursue master's degree in Financial Management at Prasetya Mulya Business School in Jakarta. He graduated as a Master of Business Administration (MBA).[7]
Family
Basuki is married to Veronica Tan and the couple have three kids, Nicolas Sean, Natania, and Daud Albeneer.[8]
Political career
Early involvement with politics
Basuki entered politics in his home region of Belitung. He ran in the 2005 East Belitung regent election with Khairul Effendi as his running mate and was elected as regent with 37.13% of the vote. Basuki believes that Indonesia is breaking with the past, that had a long and often violent history of prejudice and resentment. He is nicknamed "The Father" and "The Law" for strong actions against corruption.[9] After a month in office, Basuki confronted key issues related to traffic congestion, labor, corruption and the bureaucracy. He mediated a minimum wage increase, proposed incentives for street vendors to move to designated markets in order to reduce congestion, migrating poor villagers into new flats, launched sudden inspections of government offices, and proposed installing closed circuit televisions to improve accountability.[10]
2007 Bangka-Belitung gubernatorial election
Basuki resigned from his position as East Belitung regent on 11 December 2006 in order to run in the 2007 Bangka-Belitung gubernatorial election. Among his supporters was former president Abdurrahman Wahid who personally campaigned for him. Wahid praised Ahok's healthcare reforms.
Basuki was defeated by Eko Maulana Ali.
In 2008, Basuki wrote a biography titled Merubah Indonesia (Reforming Indonesia)[11]
Parliamentary career
In 2009, Basuki was elected to the House of Representatives, as a Golkar politician. He was elected with 119,232 votes [12] and was assigned to the Second Commission.[13] In 2011, he created a controversy during a visit to his local constituency. He was recorded by the local media condemning local tin mining businesses for causing environmental damage. The comment was regarded as an insult by a local youth NGO, who reported him to the House Ethics Committee.[14]
Jakarta's deputy governor
In 2011, Basuki considered to run as Jakarta governor as an independent. However, he decided not to run as he was pessimistic about his chances on getting 250 thousand signatures, the requirement for running as an independent gubernatorial candidate in Jakarta.[15] However, he then ran along Joko Widodo in the 2012 election as his running mate. Jokowi and Basuki won 1.847.157 (42,60%) votes in the first round, and 2.472.130 (53,82%) in the second round, defeating incumbernt governor Fauzi Bowo.[16][17] The ticket was nominated by the Indonesian Democratic Party – Struggle (PDI-P) and the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra).[18] On 10 September 2014, Basuki left Gerindra due to a dispute on a proposed bill on regional elections. Since then, he becomes politically unaffiliated.
Governorship
When Joko Widodo took a temporary leave from his post as Jakarta governor to run for President, Basuki became the acting Governor of Jakarta from 1 June 2014. Following Jokowi's victory, he succeeded him as governor and was sworn into office on 18 November 2014.
Target of racism
A member of a minority ethnic group, Basuki has become the subject of occasional racist comments. During the 2012 gubernatorial campaign, he was targeted regularly by ultra-conservatives and supporters of rival candidates for being a non-Muslim. Furthermore, Basuki's "double minority" background makes him a target of the hardliner Islamic Defenders Front (FPI). The group called for the revision of the Jakarta constitution to remove some of the governor's responsibilities for government-affiliated Islamic organizations.[19]
Numerous hardliner groups staged several violent protests opposing him in the weeks leading to his inauguration, mentioning his background as a reason.[20] In contrast, most mainstream Muslim organizations and communities throws support behind Basuki.[21]
References
- ↑ "Asal Mula Basuki Tjahaja Dipanggil Ahok" (in Indonesian). Tempo. 30 October 2014. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
- ↑ "Ahok becomes Jakarta governor today". The Jakarta Post. 19 November 2014.
- ↑ "Siapa Ahok?" (in Indonesian). Retrieved 20 March 2012.
- ↑ "An Ethnic Chinese Christian, Breaking Barriers in Indonesia". The New York Times. 22 November 2014.
- ↑ Jakarta Could Be Getting Its First Ethnically Chinese Governor
- ↑ "Profil Basuki Tjahaja Purnama". Merdeka. 25 November 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
- ↑ "Siapa Ahok?" (in Indonesian). Retrieved 14 April 2014.
- ↑ "Nicolas Sean, Anak Ahok yang Hobi Ngegame". detikinet. Retrieved 2015-12-15.
- ↑ "In Indonesia, ethnic Chinese see a new future". 19 August 2012.
- ↑ "The Leaderboard: Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama". 27 November 2012.
- ↑ http://ahok.org/berita/news/pdf-buku-merubah-indonesia/
- ↑ Wajah DPR dan DPD, 2009-2014: latar belakang pendidikan dan karier, Penerbit Buku Kompas, 2010, page 171
- ↑ Daftar Komisi II DPR RI, Okezone, 29 October 2009
- ↑ Ahok: Bela Rakyat Tapi kok dilaporkan ke BK DPR RI, PetaPolitik.Com, 20 May 2011
- ↑ http://www.beritasatu.com/megapolitan/29121-a-hok-pesimis-lolos-cagub-independen-dki-jakarta.html
- ↑ http://megapolitan.kompas.com/read/2012/07/19/1721403/JokowiAhok.Pemenang.Pilkada.Putaran.Pertama
- ↑ http://megapolitan.kompas.com/read/2012/09/28/1724329/jokowi.basuki.menangi.pilkada.dki.putaran.ii
- ↑ "Jokowi, Ahok take a Kopaja to KPUD". The Jakarta Post. 19 March 2012. Retrieved 20 March 2012.
- ↑ "The Leaderboard: Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama". 27 November 2012.
- ↑ "FPI members arrested during violent protest". The Jakarta Post. 3 October 2014.
- ↑ "Muslims declare support for Ahok". The Jakarta Post. 18 November 2014.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Joko Widodo |
Governor of Jakarta 2014–present |
Incumbent |