Kalimantan government rejects councillors' Rp 5.4b proposal<\/p>\n
Rusman, Samarinda, East Kalimantan<\/p>\n
The East Kalimantan government has rejected a proposal submitted
\nby the province's 45 councillors for Rp 5.4 billion (US$600,000),
\nor Rp 120 million each, to be used toward \"operational
\nactivities\" ahead of September, when their five-year terms will
\nend.<\/p>\n
According to a provincial government decree dated May 24, a
\ncopy of which was obtained on Thursday by The Jakarta Post, the
\nrejection was made on the grounds that the request was in breach
\nof Government Regulation No. 110\/2000 on financial affairs of
\nlegislative councils.<\/p>\n
Under the regulation, the operational funds of a legislative
\ncouncil is limited to a maximum Rp 2.5 billion if the provincial
\nrevenue exceeds Rp 500 billion.<\/p>\n
East Kalimantan's 2003 revenue was Rp 604.4 billion.<\/p>\n
\"Based on this figure, the request for Rp 5.4 billion, which
\nwas made in mid-May, is disproportionate and must be rejected,\"
\nexplained Mur'an Latif, head of the provincial finance agency.<\/p>\n
The staggering sum was proposed to be used by East Kalimantan
\ncouncillors for operational activities, such as visiting
\nconstituents in remote areas.<\/p>\n
Separately, the coordinator of the council's budget committee,
\nKasyful Anwar As'ad, said he was not at all surprised by the
\ngovernment's decision, as the request was excessive and improper.<\/p>\n
Local anticorruption activists had alleged the proposal was an
\nattempt by the council to enrich its members before their terms'
\nend, as it had not succeeded in securing severance pay for them.<\/p>\n
Last month, the Padang District Court convicted 43 West
\nSumatra councillors in a high-profile corruption case for
\nembezzling Rp 6.4 billion from the 2002 provincial budget through
\na similar proposal for \"extra allowances\".<\/p>",
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