Concept Development of the Foundations of Planning under Pressure: A Case Study of Village Road Development Planning in Riau Province, Indonesia

The purpose of this study was to provide a conceptual definition and description of forms of pressure in planning, as explained by Friend and Hickling, to identify other possible types of pressure in the context of provincial development planning and budgeting in Indonesia. As a case study, this paper discusses the dilemmas in provincial development planning involving the development of road infrastructure in a rural area in Indonesia. More specifically, it looks at the role the provincial government plays in building rural road with limited authority and how the legislature fights for the aspirations of their voters in rural areas according to their obligations as stated in the law stipulating the regional political system. The needs, obligations, and authority of these two parties can be in conflict with one another, which ultimately has implications for the development planning process. As a conclusion, it can be said that the existing regulations are not fully in line with the development planning practice, and the current political system leads to disharmony within development planning institutions, especially at the provincial level, related to the development plan of rural roads in Indonesia. In these conditions, the planning process is under a type of pressure experienced by the executive and the legislative branches and cannot be categorized into the six forms of pressure as conceived by Friend and Hickling. The name proposed here for this type of pressure is “conflegs.”