Foundation to manage poor fund<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government set up a foundation yesterday to
\nmanage donations from companies and rich people to finance
\npoverty alleviation programs.<\/p>\n
President Soeharto, in his personal capacity, together with
\nbusinessmen Sudono Salim and Sudwikatmono and State Minister of
\nPopulation Haryono Suyono, signed the notary deed for the
\nestablishment of the foundation, called Yayasan Dana Sejahtera
\nMandiri (self-reliant prosperity fund).<\/p>\n
"It is a private foundation to help the government's poverty
\nalleviation program under the coordination of the office of the
\nstate minister of population to implement," Minister Haryono
\nquoted the President as saying after the signing of the deed.<\/p>\n
The foundation is chaired by Soeharto (in his personal
\ncapacity) with his son Bambang Trihatmodjo acting as treasurer,
\nSubiakto Tjakrawerdaja (the minister of cooperatives and small
\ncompanies) as secretary and Fuad Bawazier (the tax director
\ngeneral) as deputy secretary.<\/p>\n
The foundation has a paid-up capital of Rp 250 million
\n(US$109,650), which was put up by the four founding figures.<\/p>\n
Haryono said that the foundation will get its funds from
\ndonations to be raised on the basis of Presidential Decree No.
\n90\/1995.<\/p>\n
The decree, issued last month, calls on individuals and
\ncompanies with after-tax incomes or profits of more than Rp 100
\nmillion (US$43,470) a year to donate up to 2 percent of their
\nearnings to the poverty alleviation program.<\/p>\n
Management<\/p>\n
"These funds will be managed in a transparent manner and their
\nuse will be reported to the public. House members are welcome to
\ninquire about the use of the funds," Haryono quoted Soeharto as
\nsaying.<\/p>\n
"We hope businessmen will also give personal donations to the
\nfoundation," he said, adding that all the funds will be channeled
\nthrough the state-owned Bank BNI 46.<\/p>\n
The donations, he said, would not be an additional burden to
\nbusinessmen because the top rate of income tax has been reduced
\nfrom 35 percent to 30 percent.<\/p>\n
"They should not be scared by this fund-collection program but
\nshould instead fell morally bound to help the needy," he said.<\/p>\n
According to official data in 1994, there were 6,572 corporate
\ntaxpayers and 4,553 individual taxpayers with after-tax earnings
\nof more than Rp 100 million a year.<\/p>\n
"Their total after-tax earnings were estimated at Rp 12.5
\ntrillion. Even a mere 2 percent of the total would have reached
\nRp 250 billion," he added.<\/p>\n
The donations, he said, could be raised from both Indonesian
\nand foreign companies and businessmen.<\/p>\n
"It seems a lot, but it actually cannot yet cover the poor's
\nneeds. If each poor family gets a loan of Rp 100,000 ($43.86),
\nthen they will need some Rp 1.15 trillion," Haryono quoted
\nPresident Soeharto as saying.<\/p>\n
According to the government, the number of people living below
\nthe poverty line has fallen sharply from 63 percent of the total
\npopulation in 1970 to only 13.7 percent (around 25 million) in
\n1993.<\/p>\n
According to Haryono, a fund of Rp 1.15 trillion is needed for
\nthe poverty-alleviation program, under which each poor family
\nwill be granted a loan of Rp 100,000 with an annual interest rate
\nof 6 percent.<\/p>\n
The government, he said, is now recording onto computer 15
\nmillion poor families which will receive the low-interest loans.<\/p>\n
"For the first stage, some five million families will benefit
\nfrom the program," he said.<\/p>\n
He pointed out that the presidential decree also asks foreign
\ncompanies to participate in the program.<\/p>\n
Tax Director General Fuad Bawazier told newsmen his office
\nwould be managing the collection of the donations.<\/p>\n
But he declined to give further comments, saying that the
\nfinance minister has yet to issue rulings on the technical
\ndetails for the implementation of the Presidential decree.<\/p>\n
Informed sources said the fund raising program will start in
\nMarch, the deadline for the filing of the 1995 income tax
\nreturns. (13\/hen)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/foundation-to-manage-poor-fund-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}