Civil servants to get 30 percent pay increase<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government reached agreement on Tuesday with
\nthe House of Representatives budget committee to raise the salary
\nof government employees, police and the military by 30 percent in
\nthe April-December 2000 state budget, legislator Aberson Marle
\nSihaloho said.<\/p>\n
Aberson said that the salary increase would be made in two
\nstages during the budget year because of the government's limited
\nfinancial capability.<\/p>\n
\"We have agreed in principle to raise the salary by 30
\npercent,\" he told reporters following a closed door meeting.<\/p>\n
At present, the base salary of an unmarried civil servant of
\nthe lowest wrung amounts to Rp 141,800 (US$19.16) a month).<\/p>\n
He added that the government also agreed to raise the special
\nallowance of paramedics, teachers, and policemen by an additional
\n100 percent.<\/p>\n
The government proposed in January Rp 45.7 trillion for total
\npersonnel pays under the assumption that civil servants' salaries
\nwould be raised by 20 percent.<\/p>\n
The government maintains that the salary increase would help
\nreduce the rampant corruption in the country's bureaucracy.<\/p>\n
Aberson said that the salary increase was also expected to
\nhelp raise the purchasing power of the estimated 4.5 million
\ncivil servants after the government decided to raise fuel prices
\nby an average 12 percent, and electricity tariff by 29 percent.<\/p>\n
The House is scheduled to approve the 2000 state budget on
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
The government earlier agreed to raise tax revenues,
\nprivatization proceeds, oil revenue target in a bid to help
\nfinance the various government subsidy spendings and the raise in
\nthe salary of government employees.<\/p>\n
But the higher revenue target raises some concerns among
\neconomists on whether the government can meet the target amid the
\ncurrent economic and political conditions.<\/p>\n
Legislators earlier demanded a much higher increase in the
\nsalary of civil servants, pointing out that it was unfair to
\nprovide a hefty Rp 42.3 trillion to finance the interest costs of
\ngovernment bank recapitalization bonds.<\/p>\n
Deputy of the House budget committee Abdullah Zainie said on
\nTuesday that legislators wanted the government to lower the bank
\nrecapitalization cost in the 2000 budget to Rp 31 trillion, from
\nRp 42.3 trillion originally planned, to ease budgetary pressures.<\/p>\n
Abdullah said that the interest costs of the bank
\nrecapitalization bonds to be paid by the government this year
\nwould total only Rp 31 trillion.<\/p>\n
He said that the other Rp 11 trillion earlier proposed by the
\ngovernment to pay for the interest costs of the bonds for
\nrecapitalizing Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Bank Tabungan Negara, Bank
\nNiaga and Bank Danamon plus eight other banks would not be
\nincluded in the April-December budget as the bonds have yet to be
\nissued.<\/p>\n
The government has issued bonds worth more than Rp 282
\ntrillion to help recapitalize several banks in order to lift
\ntheir capital adequacy ratio to the minimum 4 percent
\nrequirement. Instead of injecting fresh cash, the government
\nprovided bonds which are tradable in the secondary market.<\/p>\n
Recapitalizing the banking sector is seen as a key to reviving
\nthe country's ailing economy. (rei)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/civil-servants-to-get-30-percent-pay-increase-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}