Midnight Adventure with the Truck’s Driver
This story is based on my true experience with the truck’s driver from Sumbawa to Mataram [as part of my research] on 16.00, 6 July until 03.30, 7 July 2006 around 12 hours. The best part of the adventure was to understand some important issues based on the driver’s view such as truck’s business, political situation, poverty, and world cup.
We passed through some land marks from Sumbawa that were easier to be recognized: Simpang Karaci, Pure Kanaar, Tower Excel, Tower Telcomcell, Pototano’s Port, Kayangan’s Port, Masjid Jami, and Cakra (central business in Mataram). We stopped twice for having food and coffee. In the Pototano, we met several drivers from many trucks which waiting for the vessel for crossing the Alas Bay. We talked about the business condition, especially trucking business. The business, especially trucking business in that route, is slowing down because two reasons: high oil price and high vessels’ service fee for crossing the bay [around 100% higher than before for each]. It has happened since the mid year 2005. Some small truck’s firms were closed and the survivors could only from the big firms and has a longer route which has some advantages from the economies of scale.
They also have attention on political situation; they said what happened today in this country is the leaders only fight for their own power and wealth. The people are left behind. They just put a bad name on their political enemy for their own good. It happened since Suharto stepped down. They think that It was better on the Suharto’s time: there were many corruption but the business and the people were better than today.
On poverty, the have a confession: they are not the part of the poor people because they could not get the government’s cash transfer. They admitted got salary around 200.000 a month. Their salary could be lower if they “caught” in the street, because they have to pay for the ‘sanction’ which has no bill. Each transaction which has no bill will not be paid by the firm; they should pay from their salary.
When we talked about the world cup, the condition of conversation was alive. They are the football mania. Even though they could not watch all the playing because their job, each of them has his own favorite team. Most of them were disappointed by the loss of Germany. They prefer Germany or Brazil or Argentina won the world cup. They thought those teams are better than Italy and French in this world cup.
Our trip was continued by crossing the Bay with the vessel around 1.5 hours, then moved to Mataram. We stopped in the Simpang Lembar, because they will continue to Surabaya, while we had to stop in Mataram. I and the surveyor were having ojek to search hotel. Unfortunately, there was no hotel opened on that time: 03.30 in the morning. Finally we asked the ojecks to terminal. Then we got a nap on small musholla in the terminal until 06.00 before going back to Sumbawa around 06.30 a.m.
Hotel Cendrawasih, Sumbawa, NTB, 18.37, 07/07/06
