The Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) of Jember Regency urges the local government and event organizers to tighten supervision and increase professionalism in hosting sports events. This step was taken following an incident involving a stranded runner from Kenya, which is feared could tarnish the region's image as an event-based tourism destination.
The Chairman of Commission B of the Jember DPRD, Candra Ary Fianto, emphasized that this incident must serve as a source of deep evaluation for all related parties. According to the legislator from the PDI Perjuangan party, the readiness of all aspects of the event—ranging from administration, participant services, to field execution—must be thoroughly planned to maintain Jember's good reputation on national and international stages.
Furthermore, Candra reminded that the Jember Regency Government is currently aggressively strengthening its tourism branding through various large-scale agendas. Therefore, he requested that management negligence, which has the potential to trigger negative sentiment, does not happen again in the future.
As a concrete improvement step, Commission B proposed that the Department of Tourism and Sports (Dispora) actively monitor the process starting from the initial planning stages. Event organizers are suggested to obtain a feasibility recommendation letter from the relevant department before applying for crowd permits from the police.
According to Candra, this verification mechanism is crucial to ensure that all technical regulations and services for participants meet established standards. If managed professionally, sports events will not only serve as a means of tourism promotion but also drive hotel occupancy, directly contributing to Regional Original Revenue (PAD).
Previously, a runner from Kenya named Matirim Thomas Kipkorir was reported stranded in Jember because he did not receive the grand prize he hoped to use to buy a ticket home. The prize was cancelled because the competition regulations stipulated that the award was only intended for Indonesian citizens holding official identification.
