President Jokowi Installs New Maluku Governor, Deputy Governor

President Jokowi inaugurates new Governor and Deputy Governor of Maluku for the period of 2019-2024 at the State Palace, Jakarta, Wednesday (24/4). Photo by: Agung/PR.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Wednesday (24/4) at the State Palace officially inaugurated Inspector General of Police (Ret.) Murad Ismail and Barnabas Nathaniel Orno as Governor and Deputy Governor of Maluku for the period of 2019-2024.

On that occasion, Deputy to Minister of State Secretary for Apparatus Administration Cecep Sutiawan recited Presidential Decree Number 189/P of 2018 on the Appointment of Governor and Deputy Governor of Maluku for the term of 2019-2024. Afterwards, the pair took an oath before signing the inauguration ceremony minutes.

Speaking to reporters after the inauguration ceremony, Murad Ismail said his first priority is combating poverty. “Maluku is the third poorest province in Indonesia and has a highest unemployment rate,” he said.

Murad went on to say that the province also still grapples with poor public services, especially in education and health sectors, adding that lack of transparency from the investors in Maluku also remains an issue.

“We will put temporary moratorium on investment. We are going to review the positive and negative effects of investment for the people, ” Murad said.

A regional head, he added, is responsible for alleviating poverty, improving welfare of the people and preserving natural resources for the present and future generations.

“That’s our noble duty,” he said.

The newly-inaugurated governor also expressed hope that Maluku will be on par with other provinces in Indonesia. He added that since Maluku has 1,340 islands with total area of 712,498 square kilometers, it needs a lot of ports to ensure competitiveness of the province’s commodity prices. (AIT/AGG/EN) (AIT/OJI/EN)

Translated by: Ridwan Ibadurrohman
Edited by: Ersan Pamungkas