CAPITALIST ENCOUNTERS, COMPETITION, AND SUBSTITUTION: THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF MAKASSAR CITY, SOUTH SULAWESI

Abstract

The political economy reality in Makassar City, South Sulawesi, positions capital space as a mature basis and arena for competition and substitution of capital and power. To explain this variation, we interpret the prevailing capitalism as an ersatz concept—one that reflects the shifting positions of capitalists and the turn toward exploitation and conflict for the sake of capital accumulation in the post-authoritarian era. We employ a qualitative research method to examine the extent to which political economy can capture the development of capitalism between Tionghoa groups and Indigenous Elites, both of who are considered capable of driving the local economy. Our findings show that the prevailing ersatz capitalism does not bring about welfare; rather, it leads to land and natural resource exploitation that fails to contribute to the well-being of the people.