Rp 800m provided to slum program<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The city administration and the Ministry of
\nSocial Affairs handed over a donation totaling Rp 800 million
\n(US$100,000) to all five Jakarta mayoralties yesterday to help
\ncontinue the city's slum rehabilitation program.<\/p>\n
The funds were received by representatives of the mayoralties
\nin a ceremony led by Governor Sutiyoso.<\/p>\n
In his speech, the governor expressed hope that the donation
\ncould help the mayoralties' programs in rehabilitating slum areas
\nand developing more decent homes.<\/p>\n
\"I know that with the current monetary condition, the amount
\ndonated to you today may not be enough,\" Sutiyoso said.<\/p>\n
\"But the most important thing is to make the best use of the
\nfunds available,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Out of the total fund, Rp 550 million was donated by the city
\nadministration and the remaining Rp 250 million from the Ministry
\nof Social Affairs.<\/p>\n
The first Rp 300 million from the municipality were
\ndistributed equally to the three mayoralties of Central, North
\nand West Jakarta. The remaining Rp 250 million were shared by the
\nSouth and East Jakarta mayoralties.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Social Affairs' funds were split equally
\nbetween the South and East Jakarta mayoralties.<\/p>\n
The city's slum rejuvenation program covers at least 275 slum
\nareas here.<\/p>\n
Out of the five mayoralties, East Jakarta ranks first in terms
\nof slum areas. According to the city's survey, there are at least
\n73 areas considered as slums in the mayoralty, including in
\nCakung, Rawaterate, Pulo Gadung, Matraman, Jatinegara, Duren
\nSawit, Pasar Rebo and Ciracas.<\/p>\n
South Jakarta's 42 slum spots include those in Bukit Duri,
\nTebet and Pasar Minggu.<\/p>\n
The funds, Sutiyoso said, should be made available to needy
\nresidents, particularly those who need help in rehabilitating
\ntheir homes.<\/p>\n
According to Sutiyoso, the Rp 800 million fund would be
\npresented later to owners of 1,195 houses in slum areas which
\nwould help them to renovate their homes.<\/p>\n
Each house owner would receive between Rp 700,000 and Rp
\n750,000, he said.<\/p>\n
The city's slum rehabilitation program has generally been
\ncarried out in three forms -- slum eradication, kampong
\nrehabilitation and a combination of the two -- in a bid to create
\nbetter housing for Jakartans.<\/p>\n
The eradication of slum areas has aimed to convert former
\nplots into cheap apartments. The slum rehabilitation program has
\naimed to improve the quality of the environment without evicting
\nresidents, while the combination plan has built apartments based
\non the social class of the prospective inhabitants.<\/p>\n
\"I believe if the fund could be used efficiently, low-income
\npeople living in slums would be given a chance to live a better
\nlife,\" the governor said.<\/p>\n
Critics<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, some councilors criticized the way the money was to
\nbe used, saying that giving such limited funds to households in
\nslum areas would be ineffective.<\/p>\n
City councilor Djafar Badjeber, head of Commission B for
\nEconomic Affairs said yesterday the municipality must change its
\napproach in rehabilitating the city's slum areas.<\/p>\n
\"The amount to be donated to the residents is too small
\ncompared to what they really need. I, therefore, suggest the
\nmunicipality allocate the funds to building more low-cost
\napartments which I think would be more effective,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Djafar said the amount to be donated was too small and
\ntherefore would not make a lot of difference for the people.<\/p>\n
\"What could you do nowadays with Rp 700,000 if you had to
\nrenovate a house? The price of building materials is already
\nskyrocketing.\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"I'm not saying that the program is a total failure. Not at
\nall. I just think that it would be wise to allocate the money to
\na more effective housing program,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Councilor Lukman Mokoginta shared Djafar's opinion, saying
\nthat the donation from the city administration was far from
\nenough.<\/p>\n
\"It's only Rp 160 million for each mayoralty. How can such a
\nsmall amount be effective for such a big project?\" Lukman
\nquestioned.<\/p>\n
He said that such projects needed billions of rupiah and that
\nthe funds might be adequate for small projects in community
\nneighborhoods, but not for big areas such as mayoralties.<\/p>\n
\"I have no idea how construction work can be done with such a
\nsmall donation. It's far from enough,\" he said.<\/p>\n
However, he said, the fund was still a necessity for people in
\nthe slum areas during such a monetary crisis, otherwise it could
\ncause other social problems in which the city might be forced to
\nspend a greater amount of funds. (edt\/ind)<\/p>",
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