Bali Governor Candidates Talk Tourism, Trash And Traffic Congestion

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With the governor elections coming up in Bali on the 27th of November, candidates are making their commitments to the Balinese people known.

Topics of conversation include tourism, trash, and traffic congestion.

The main candidates are Wayan Koster, who has already severed a term as Bali Governor, and Made Muliawan Arya.

If elected, Wayan Koster will bring the current Regent of Badung, I Nyoman Giri Prasta, on as his Deputy. Made Muliawan Arya’s running mate is Putu Agus Suradnyana.

During an election event called “Where Should Bali Tourism Be Taken” hosted by the Association of the Indonesian Tourism Industry, the pair went head to head to bring forward their solutions and growth plans.

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The topic of the day was tourism; Bali’s longstanding issues of trash and traffic congestion are inextricably linked to the sector.

On the topic of traffic jams in Bali, the question of where and how to implement solutions was posed by a representative of the Land Transportation Agency, to Made Muliawan Arya.

The representative stated that there are more than 5 million motorized vehicles in Bali, 4.3 million of which are motorcycles, which is more than the population of people in Bali.

The representative asked Arya whether he would impose a ban on motorbike purchases to help direct people to more widespread use of public transport. 

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Arya responded by saying that a ban on purchasing motorcycles would not be necessary and that it would be constitutionally questionable.

He did, however, note that improvements must be made to help make Bali more pedestrian-friendly and that public transport in tourist resorts like Kuta, Canggu, and Ubud must be improved.

Arya’s candidate for Deputy Governor, Putu Agus Suradnyana, responded to the airy, noting that a combination of long and short-term solutions must be found.

He suggested creating underpasses in overly congested areas and constructing more multi-story parking, as well as developing more tourism destinations in the North Badung area to help spread the high concentration of tourism infrastructure in South Badung more evenly. 

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One hot topic of the afternoon was mandatory insurance for all tourists. A huge issue for the Bali travel and tourism sector is tourists traveling to the province without or with insufficient insurance.

Other world-leading island destinations like Zanzibar in Tanzania have just introduced mandatory government-issued travel insurance for all tourists to the region to help battle the rising number of foreigners who end up in local hospitals, unable to pay for their substantial medical bills. 

The Indonesian Recreation Park Business Associations (PUTRI) put forward an idea to Arya and Suradnyana that a policy should be introduced that makes insurance mandatory for all who visit the province.

Arya noted that there are already safeguards and guidance in place to promote tourists to ensure they have travel insurance, but agreed that more could be done. 

On the theme of cultural respect and tourism, the audience was keen to hear campaign commitments from both pairs of candidates.

The topic, brought forward by the Bali Villa Association, called on the candidates to give their response to a recent clash of cultures where a Canggu beach club conducted a fireworks display while the local community was conducting a religious ceremony on the beach close by. 

Candidate Koster said that he would issue a specific safeguarding regulation that sees the sea and the coastline, including Bali’s beaches, belong to the public or the state and cannot be used or interfered with by international investors or private businesses.

He noted that the ocean and the beaches are an important part of Balinese Hindu life that need to be preserved. 

Koster also committed to restoring some of Bali’s most spiritually significant temples, including Pura Besakih, also known as the Mother Temple.

He explained, “We will restore Besakih Temple because many shrines have been severely damaged.”

Koster also revisited projects he started in his first term as Governor, notably the cultural and tourism center in Klungkung.

He told the audience, “This area will become a new icon of Bali tourism, which will attract not only domestic tourists but also foreign tourists.”