DPR wants govt to consult before imposing protection<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Members of the House of Representatives (DPR)
\nhave urged the government to consult the legislative body before
\nimposing any tariff protection policy for industrial ventures to
\navoid irregularities or collusion with businesses.<\/p>\n
\"The parliament has thus far not received any consultation on
\nprotectionist measures from the related ministries,\" Hamzah Haz,
\nchairman of the United Development Party's (PPP) faction at DPR,
\ntold reporters after the annual state address of President
\nSoeharto before the parliament here on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Hamzah said that the House, as a legislative and consultative
\nforum, has a strategic position not only to weigh up any policy
\nof the government but also to help provide more legal basis on
\npolicies.<\/p>\n
\"It is not only a matter of business but also the legality of
\npolicies,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He was optimistic that consultation will create a far-reaching
\ninsight and help clean up policies from irregularities.<\/p>\n
Tadjuddin Noer Said, a member of the House's Commission VI,
\nsaid that some DPR members, for example, wanted the government to
\nhold discussions before deciding to protect the olefins to be
\nproduced by PT Chandra Asri's petrochemical project in Serang,
\nWest Java, to avoid any misinterpretation on the policy.<\/p>\n
State Minister of Investment\/Chairman of the Investment
\nCoordinating Board Sanyoto Sastrowardoyo said recently that the
\ngovernment will protect Chandra Asri's products against imports
\ndue to its strategic role in generating foreign exchange.<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for Economy and Finance Saleh Afiff and
\nState Minister of National Development Planning\/Chairman of the
\nNational Development Planning Board Ginandjar Kartasasmita
\ndefended the tariff protection of Chandra Asri's products on the
\ngrounds that the policy will have a good impact on the operating
\nof the downstream industries.<\/p>\n
Tadjuddin assured that the proposed consultation will help
\nprotect the government from irregularities and collusion with
\nbusiness people.<\/p>\n
Restricted<\/p>\n
\"I am of strong opinion that the protection policy is so
\nrestricted to the extent of the advancement of conglomerate
\nowners,\" he cautioned.<\/p>\n
\"And you can see that there are so many companies enjoining
\ntariff protection without limitation of time because their
\nexecutives or owners have strong support from government
\nofficials,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"Such protection will not encourage industrial companies to
\nimprove efficiency,\" he said, adding that such protection will
\nalso make Indonesian products less competitive on the world
\nmarket.<\/p>\n
Tadjuddin, therefore, suggested that the government establish
\na ruling on the protection of industries.<\/p>\n
Yahya Nasution, House member of the Indonesian Democratic
\nParty's (PDI) faction, concurred that deliberating such a ruling
\nshould be a top priority of DPR's agenda in the second long-term
\n(25-year) development plan. \"We hope before the end of the Sixth
\nFive Year Development Plan (Repelita VI) period in 1999, such a
\nruling will have been established,\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
\"With such a ruling, the public will be informed on objectives
\nand effectiveness of tariff protection,\" he said.<\/p>\n
A.A. Baramuli, a member of the House's Budgetary Commission,
\nsaid that the proposed ruling should be able to stress the
\nimportance of both upstream and downstream industries.<\/p>\n
He was citing the statement of the President before the
\nparliament, urging all parties to boost the growth of both
\ndownstream and upstream industries in efforts to develop self-
\nsupporting industries in the country.<\/p>\n
\"We have to strengthen the downstream industries, which so far
\nhave been the mainstay of our exports and they must also be
\nlinked with the intermediate and upstream industries,\" Soeharto
\nsaid in his speech.<\/p>\n
Momentous<\/p>\n
According to Baramuli, the proposed ruling on protection is
\nmomentous for Indonesia in anticipation of the new era of trade
\nliberalization to be introduced by the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement
\n(AFTA) and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).<\/p>\n
\"I would say that protection should be imposed only on `quite
\nstrategic' industrial sectors, like the sea transportation
\nservice industry,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said the government should review its protection given to
\nthe automotive industry.<\/p>\n
Unlike Hamzah, Tadjuddin and Baramuli, a member of the
\nBudgetary Commission, Markus Mangisara Lubis, told the Post that
\nthe proposed ruling on protection is not necessary because
\nprotection is temporary in nature.<\/p>\n
\"But I would suggest that the government take strict measures
\nagainst industrial companies which fail to improve efficiency
\nafter being protected by the government for a certain period of
\ntime,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Lubis said the government should also extend protection not
\nonly to large-scale companies but also to small and medium-scale
\nbusinesses, particularly those operating in agriculture and
\ninfrastructure. (fhp\/hdj\/rid)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/dpr-wants-govt-to-consult-before-imposing-protection-1447893297",
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