Jakarta. President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said the government will be directly involved in finding solutions to issues affecting the public interest, especially the completion of infrastructure projects.

"If it is for the people's needs, or in their interest, we will also resolve existing issues," Jokowi said at the State Palace in Jakarta on Thursday (09/06), as quoted in an official statement.

Jokowi stated his intention after witnessing the signing of the financial closing for the Batang coal-fired power plant and five toll-road construction projects, some of which have been abandoned in the past.

The toll-road projects are those connecting Manado and Bitung in North Sulawesi, Balikpapan and Samarinda in East Kalimantan, Pandaan and Malang in East Java, Serpong and Balaraja in Banten, and Terbanggi Besar and Kayu Agung in Lampung.

The president said the Balikpapan-Samarinda toll-road project had been delayed for four years due to land procurement issues.

"When I look at it in the field, it is actually not a big issue. But since we didn't know it before, we could not issue instructions on anything. [..] Now, it will be completed in 2018," Jokowi said.

The president vowed that his involvement would not end at the signing ceremony, but that he would closely monitor progress in these projects  until their completion.

"We hope the public will enjoy these benefits directly," he added.

Eliminating Obstacles

One of the issues that have delayed the completion of projects in Indonesia is the complicated system of regional administration and laws. The president gave an undertaking to eliminate these obstacles.

"Our administration has been too complicated. [..] Do not make regulations that will burden the people and businesses. Within these weeks, I will scrap 3,000 regional laws," the president said. He added that his priority was to accelerate licensing processes and the timely completion of national development projects.