Govt should keep aid for Aceh, not for state budget: Analyst<\/p>\n
Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The government must prioritize the use of grants and debt relief
\nfrom donor countries for the rebuilding of tsunami-stricken Aceh
\nand North Sumatra provinces, instead of using them to help
\nbolster the state budget.<\/p>\n
To ensure this, economist Faisal Basri reiterated a recent
\ncall from non-governmental organizations that the government
\nimmediately set up an independent body to monitor the management
\nof aid funds.<\/p>\n
\"The government should not take advantage of the disaster in
\nAceh for the benefit of the state budget,\" he told The Jakarta
\nPost on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Faisal also warned the government not to be lax in maintaining
\nthe 2005 state budget at a balance -- such as by slackening its
\ntax revenue target through tax amnesties -- just because it would
\nreceive fiscal incentives from the aid pouring into Aceh.<\/p>\n
Calling it \"inappropriate\", he said such a scenario was
\npossible as the government could gain more from the monetary aid
\nfor Aceh than for its expenditure.<\/p>\n
\"The debt relief offers themselves can be greater than the
\ncost of rebuilding Aceh,\" he said.<\/p>\n
At last week's international tsunami summit, donor countries
\npledged a total of US$4 billion for relief and reconstruction for
\nthe affected countries. The detailed scheme on the debt relief
\nwill be discussed further at the Paris Club meeting on Jan. 12.<\/p>\n
The debt relief would help reduce the allocation of some US$3
\nbillion in the country's state budget for foreign debt payments.<\/p>\n
Vice President Jusuf Kalla recently said the government would
\nseek debt relief of up to Rp 30 trillion (about US$3.33 billion)
\nfrom creditor countries.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the finance ministry's Director General for State
\nTreasury Mulia Nasution said the estimated cost to rebuild Aceh
\nstood at Rp 20 trillion.<\/p>\n
Mulia also said that the 2005 state budget spending for Aceh
\nand North Sumatra would be less than Rp 100 billion from the
\ngovernment's original allocation of Rp 300 billion. The reduced
\namount was due to the monetary donations from the public and from
\nforeign countries.<\/p>\n
\"It should not be like that,\" Faisal said. \"Any financial
\nreserves, which have been designated for Aceh, should still be
\nused for the rehabilitation of the province.\"<\/p>\n
Faisal, who is also the national coordinator of the
\nHumanitarian Emergency Commission for Aceh, cited the urgency of
\nestablishing an independent body tasked to transparently maintain
\na record of donations for Aceh and their disbursement, as well as
\nto ensure that the funds reach the targeted recipients.<\/p>\n
\"Such a body is needed because the public still doubts the
\ngovernment's credibility, as it is still plagued with corruption\"
\nhe said. \"Therefore, the independent body should be led by
\nsomeone who is publicly accepted as clean.\"<\/p>\n
Faisal explained that the body should comprise of
\nrepresentatives from selected institutions and have the full
\nauthority to assess the flow of the funds.<\/p>\n
He pointed to the urgency of the body following statements
\nfrom finance ministry officials saying that none of the pledged
\naid from donor countries for Aceh had actually gone to state
\ncoffers.<\/p>\n
\"But how can the public verify that, if there is no
\ntransparent access to the funds?\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-should-keep-aid-for-aceh-not-for-state-budget-analyst-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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