Corruption clouds construction permit applications<\/p>\n
Sari P. Setiogi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Anyone who wants to erect a building must obtain a
\nconstruction permit (IMB), but applying for the permit can be a
\nbig headache.<\/p>\n
\"I had to pay an officer several hundred thousand rupiah when
\nI applied for a construction permit (IMB) to build a house at
\nKembangan subdistrict,\" Yetty, a resident at Meruya, West
\nJakarta, said.<\/p>\n
She said an officer asked her for an \"administration\" fee to
\nprocess the permit faster than it should normally be done.<\/p>\n
\"He was partly forcing me and threatening that he would not
\nprocess the license unless I paid up,\" Yetty said.<\/p>\n
Raditya, a staff member of a housing development company, told
\nThe Jakarta Post it was easy to apply for an IMB at the West
\nJakarta municipality.<\/p>\n
\"I just need to slip some extra money inside the document
\nfolder,\" he said, \"and later I receive all the documents without
\nany delay.\"<\/p>\n
It is well-known among people in Jakarta that some officers
\nask for an \"administration\" fee for processing legal documents,
\nlike construction permits. It has become another \"business\" in
\nthe city.<\/p>\n
According to head of the information section, Building
\nInspection and Planning (P2B) department, of the West Jakarta
\nmunicipality Hery Kelana Jauhari, there should be no
\nadministration fee charged at all when applying for an IMB.<\/p>\n
\"There should be no administration fee. It is an officer's job
\nto do the work. People should only pay an official fee, which is
\nbased on the land area someone owns,\" Hery said last week.<\/p>\n
But he admitted that there were unscrupulous officers who
\nusually asked for money. \"People should refuse to pay bribes to
\nofficers, otherwise there will always be bribery here,\" said
\nHery.<\/p>\n
Hery also complained about the problem of the need to make
\nadvance payments because disbursements from the city
\nadministration were usually delayed.<\/p>\n
\"The financial budget period is from January to December. But
\nsometimes we do not receive the money from the city government
\nuntil February.\"<\/p>\n
\"At those times unscrupulous officers are very vulnerable to
\noffers of bribery. Unscrupulous applicants might also use it as
\nan opportunity to apply for a permit for land on which an IMB
\ncannot be issued,\" said Hery, \"Later, around the middle of the
\nyear, we usually receive complaints.\"<\/p>\n
\"To apply for an IMB, applicants need only fill out the IMB
\nform, taking with them the land documents and their ID card, as
\nwell as the building drawing and location plan,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"For houses, people can apply for an IMB at their district
\noffice. This helps people applying for their IMB. But for other
\ntypes of building or real estate, people should apply at the
\nmunicipality.\"<\/p>\n
\"People can get a temporary permit (IP) within one day to
\nthree days. Then for the IMB itself, it may take 25 days for
\nhousing, and about 60 days for other building types,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He added that it took longer to issue non-housing IMB
\ncertificates because a technical assessment had to be made first.<\/p>\n
Hery also said that the IMB certificate-issue process \"count-
\ndown\" should start after the official fee has been paid.<\/p>\n
\"Many people complain, saying that the IMB application process
\ntakes too long. They usually count from the day they have their
\nearly consultations with officials, while the necessary
\ndocumentation might still be incomplete.\"<\/p>\n
He also said that every officer in his office should welcome
\nanyone who came for information. \"Our counter is here to serve
\npeople seeking information.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/corruption-clouds-construction-permit-applications-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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