Little change seen in city's public service program<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Ismail, 53, was not aware that his subdistrict was one of the 50
\nthat had received Rp 1 billion (US$101,010) early this year from
\nthe city administration in a pilot project to improve public
\nservices in the city.<\/p>\n
He had, however, noticed several cosmetic changes in
\nNeighborhood Unit 5, Community Unit 8 in Rawabunga, East Jakarta,
\nwhere he lives.<\/p>\n
New brooms, waste carts, and rubbish scoops had been placed in
\nthe community unit office, he said, and free food and drinks were
\nnow available for residents who carried out monthly voluntary
\nwork -- cleaning small drains, sports fields and other areas in
\nthe neighborhood.<\/p>\n
Previously, residents had to prepare their own meals before
\ncarrying out such activities, Ismail said on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\"I just found out from you (The Jakarta Post) about the pilot
\nproject. All I knew was that my Neighborhood Unit receives some
\nRp 800,000 and several sanitation tools from subdistrict office
\nannually.\"<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, the head of Community Unit 7, Neighborhood Unit 1
\nin Semanan, Kalideres, West Jakarta, 45-year-old Romli Umar,
\nconfirmed his subdistrict had recently received Rp 1 billion from
\nthe administration.<\/p>\n
\"I was informed about the fund when I had a meeting in the
\nKalideres District Office recently. During the meeting, our
\ndistrict head warned subdistrict heads that they would be jailed
\nif they could not manage the fund properly,\" Romli said.<\/p>\n
Romli did not know, however, what the money was supposed to be
\nused for. All he knew was that there were many new flower pots
\nplaced in several parts of his neighborhood. He also noted more
\nsecurity guards had been hired by the subdistrict for his
\ncommunity unit.<\/p>\n
Under the project guidelines, subdistrict and district heads
\nare required spend Rp 1 billion to improve conditions in five
\nareas -- public services, public order, community health, the
\nenvironment and administrative affairs. However, each head is
\nallowed to set independent priorities based on the conditions of
\ntheir areas.<\/p>\n
Next year, the administration plans to carry out the public
\nservice improvement program in all 267 subdistricts and 44
\ndistricts in the city, although one official admitted the office
\nhad not carried out any comprehensive evaluations of what the
\nmoney should be spent on, a necessary prerequisite for properly
\nmonitoring the scheme.<\/p>\n
If the administration went ahead with the program, every
\nsubdistrict would receive Rp 1.7 billion annually, while each
\ndistrict would receive Rp 4 billion.<\/p>\n
Both Ismail and Romli said they had noticed some small changes
\nin their subdistricts, but had seen no marked improvements in the
\nmany other public services district-level offices were supposed
\nto provide.<\/p>\n
\"I have seen no (major) changes, it's business as usual.
\nOfficials still ask for small amounts of money from residents who
\nneed services, like extensions to their identity cards, although
\nsuch services are free of charge based on existing regulations,\"
\nIsmail said.<\/p>\n
Sonar Butar Butar, 55, a resident of Kapuk subdistrict in West
\nJakarta, another pilot area, said the major problems in his
\nneighborhood remained urgent.<\/p>\n
\"The sanitation of our neighborhood is still very bad. There
\nhas been no money (given) for sanitation improvements from the
\nsubdistrict office ... I also do not see any other new programs,\"
\nsaid Sonar, who has lived in Neighborhood Unit 12, Community Unit
\n16, for about 15 years.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/little-change-seen-in-citys-public-service-program-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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