Police, military join hands in patroling city<\/p>\n
By K. Basrie and Wahyudi MP<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Anyone can fall prey to crime. And anyone
\nunlucky enough to be a victim would no doubt feel better if the
\npolice were nearby.<\/p>\n
Today, many people expect the police to patrol neighborhood
\nstreets. But does one ever consider the day-to-day problems faced
\nby police in carrying out their duty to keep the city secure?<\/p>\n
With Jakarta spanning an area of 650 square kilometers, police
\npatrol units have a lot to cover on their limited fuel
\nallowances.<\/p>\n
Nobody has probably tried to imagine how the police patrol
\nunits get adequate fuel to run their vehicles. The problem has
\nbeen a headache for the police themselves for years.<\/p>\n
A limited budget apparently forces the government to allocate
\na very unreasonable amount of money for the police patrols.<\/p>\n
A patroller's motorbike, for instance, is only supplied with
\nthree liters of gas per 24 hours.<\/p>\n
A car gets only seven liters of gas per day, or enough for a
\n35-kilometer route only.<\/p>\n
Each patrolmen is required to run their vehicles at no more
\nthan 30 kph. They then have to stop at certain points, meaning
\nthat the vehicles will consume more petrol. Not to mention the
\ntraffic jams.<\/p>\n
The patrol equipment supplied by the government is also
\nlimited and far below the minimum standard. The torches that
\npatrolmen are issued, for example, use batteries that have a very
\nshort lifespan.<\/p>\n
When you see an on-duty patrolman on a motorbike, never assume
\nthat the vehicle was bought by state funds. It may be a public
\ndonation. Some motorcycles used for daily patrols are even owned
\nby the officers themselves.<\/p>\n
From this point of view, it seems that the government is aware
\nof the police effort to collect as much \"public participation\" as
\npossible.<\/p>\n
A number of individuals, private companies and organizations
\nhave donated vehicles to the police to help solve the problem.<\/p>\n
\"We really hope that more and more people will soon follow
\nsuit,\" said City Police Chief Maj. Gen. Dibyo Widodo.<\/p>\n
Creative<\/p>\n
The limited amount of fuel has, in a way, led patrolmen to be
\nmore creative.<\/p>\n
The head of the On-the-Alert city police, which supervises
\npatrol squads, Col. Heniyoso, said that sometimes they have to
\nkeep some vehicles in the garage in order to save the petrol for
\nother cars.<\/p>\n
\"We never give up. We think and think on how to survive to
\nserve and secure the public,\" said the colonel.<\/p>\n
Police \"creativity\" is also proven by the fuel supply they
\nreceive from certain parties to help the patrolmen operate.<\/p>\n
City police officers, now totaling 15,000, have at least 100
\ncars and more than 300 motorcycles for patrol units in Jakarta,
\nhome of 11 million people.<\/p>\n
There are ways for police precincts in Greater Jakarta to get
\nextra gas from the public.<\/p>\n
A police precinct head, who asked for anonymity, said his
\noffice gets 100 liters of petrol every month from a gas station
\nowner.<\/p>\n
Other police precinct heads said they use money, collected
\nfrom people who are satisfied with police services, for the
\npatrol units.<\/p>\n
Another police precinct head said: \"If we keep on thinking
\nabout being honest or dishonest or waiting for the appropriate
\nfund from the state budget, we will be idle.\"<\/p>\n
In order to back up the police patrolmen, the city military
\ncommand set up motorcycle platoons two years ago.<\/p>\n
The motorcycle troops patrol the city daily and are ready to
\nrespond to every public call.<\/p>\n
\"The platoons are always ready to respond to public calls
\nthrough radio pager,\" said spokesman Lt. Col. Didi Supandi.<\/p>\n
People can call the troops for help by contacting telephone
\nnumber 3902222 and channeling their message to the troops' pager
\n19201 for Central Jakarta, 19202 for North Jakarta, 19203 for
\nWest Jakarta, 19204 for South Jakarta, 19205 for East Jakarta,
\n19206 for Tangerang and 19207 for Bekasi.<\/p>\n
Jakarta's crime rate is high. Last year a crime occurred every
\n20 minutes and 21 seconds. In 1993, a crime was recorded every 16
\nminutes and 30 seconds. This records indicates that Jakarta
\npolice have succeeded in reducing the number of crimes.<\/p>",
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