JAKARTA (26 Oct 2012) – Joko Widodo, the newly appointed governor of the Metropolitan city of Jakarta, has pomised Persija Jakarta FC that he will look into building them a new stadium.
Persija, which have veteran striker Bambang Pamungkas in their payroll, are perhaps the best supported team in Indonesia but with their ground at Lebak Bulus Stadium due to be taken down to make way for the epicentre of an integrated transportation system.
However, with a price tag of IDR1.5 trillion (USD 156 million) for the new stadium, Joko or Jokowi as he is more popularly known as feels that there will have to be a re-valuation.
“How is it that a football club of a major world city does not have their own stadium? So where do they train? We will make sure that Persija will have their own stadium comparable to any city in the world. Real Madrid have Santiago Bernabeu while Barcelona have Camp Nou,” said Jokowi.
“But I will have to admit that we will need time to build this new stadium, I have not seen the blueprint and the costing that have been put up for this new stadium which is supposed to cost IDR1.5 trillion. I will have to see what facilities they are planning that will take up such a big amount of money.”
