Councillors must work first, demand salary later<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
The City Council should put public interests first before
\ndemanding higher salaries and better facilities, residents say.<\/p>\n
\"The time is not right to propose higher salaries. Councillors
\nmust show the public that they can perform first, at least in
\ntheir first year, before they ask for higher salaries,\" urban
\nobserver Azas Tigor Nainggolan of the Jakarta Residents Forum
\n(Fakta) told The Jakarta Post by phone on Sunday.<\/p>\n
He made the comments after newly elected council Speaker Ade
\nSurapriatna of the Golkar Party publicly promised to provide a
\nmonthly salary of Rp 15 million (US$1,665.74) for each councillor
\nand better facilities including new cars and apartments. The
\npromise was made to \"improve the councillors' dignity\", Ade said.<\/p>\n
\"More money will not make the councillors more dignified,\"
\nAnung Karyadi of the Indonesian Transparency International group
\ntold the Post. \"In such times of crisis, it is necessary for the
\ncouncillors to prioritize first their main tasks, such as to help
\nprovide cheap education, instead of asking for raises.\"<\/p>\n
Tigor the process in which councillors were awarded higher
\nsalaries and better facilities should made transparent to enable
\nJakartans to decide if they deserved them.<\/p>\n
\"The funds (for the salary hike) will be taken from the city
\nbudget, which is taxpayers' money. Therefore, the use of the
\nmoney must be with the people's consent,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Governor Sutiyoso said his administration would try to meet
\nthe request made by the council to raise their salaries and
\nimprove the facilities.<\/p>\n
\"We will try to accommodate the request as long as it complies
\nwithin existing laws and the city budget can afford it,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Anung expressed his suspicion over the result of Friday's
\nelection, in which Ade -- who, according to the Public Servants'
\nWealth Audit Commission (KPKPN), is the richest councillor with
\ntotal asset of Rp 5,793 billion -- managed to beat Ahmad Heryawan
\nof the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).<\/p>\n
On paper, Heryawan had garnered 18 votes from the PKS
\ncouncillors and 16 votes from Democratic party councillors.<\/p>\n
During the election, Ade successfully won by 42 votes while
\nHeryawan only garnered 30 votes.<\/p>\n
\"There have been strong indications of money politics in the
\nelection, including Ade's promise to raise councillors' salaries.
\nBut we will need more data as evidence (to prove it),\" he said.<\/p>\n
Rumors circulated before election day candidates had met with
\nseveral councillors at two hotels in Central Jakarta. Some
\ncouncillors confirmed the meeting but none were willing to reveal
\nthe meeting's agenda.<\/p>\n
Tigor said Jakartans needed a changed council that would work
\nfor the people's interests, especially the poor.<\/p>\n
\"Keep in mind that only 17 of the 75 councillors are old
\nfaces. The rest are new. This reflects the public's desire for
\nchange and a wish councillors take a critical stance against
\npolicies that are for the interests of a few,\" he said.<\/p>",
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