State budget passed unchanged<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The House of Representatives (DPR) predictably
\napproved the 1996\/1997 state budget plan without a single change
\nat a plenary meeting yesterday.<\/p>\n
However members would not comment on whether they also
\napproved a proposal to increase civil servants' salaries.<\/p>\n
Sources said House members and Minister of Finance Mar'ie
\nMuhammad had amicably agreed to raise civil servants' pay by
\naround 10 percent during the four-day deliberation of the budget
\nplan early this month.<\/p>\n
But they agreed not to disclose any figure, which would be
\neffective from the beginning of April-- the start of the fiscal
\nyear-- because the announcement would immediately incite price in
\nof important commodities.<\/p>\n
\"The House members even asked the government to introduce an
\nautomatic salary increase in coming years,\" a House member said.
\nThe suggestion was turned down.<\/p>\n
President Soeharto said during the unveiling of the state
\nbudget in January that the government intended to raise civil
\nservants' pay. But he left the final decision to the House
\nmembers.<\/p>\n
The revenues and expenditures in the 1996\/97 budget plan are
\nset to balance at Rp 90.61 trillion (US$39.5 billion), 16 percent
\nhigher than the Rp 78.02 trillion in the current 1995\/96 budget.<\/p>\n
Domestic revenues are expected to increase by around 18
\npercent to Rp 78.20 trillion while those from foreign loans are
\nprojected to reach Rp 12.41 trillion, an increase of 5.6 percent
\nfrom the previous year's.<\/p>\n
The government's routine expenditures will increase by 18.8
\npercent to Rp 56.11 trillion. The personnel expenses, part of the
\nroutine spending, will rise by 19 percent to Rp 18.28 trillion.<\/p>\n
The government's spending for development projects will rise
\nby 12.1 percent to Rp 34.50 trillion.<\/p>\n
In his address at the House plenary session yesterday, Mar'ie
\nMuhammad said that the portion of the government's savings that
\nwill be used to finance development projects is expected to
\nincrease to 64 percent in the 1996\/97 fiscal year from 62 percent
\nin 1995\/96.<\/p>\n
\"The portion of the foreign loans would therefore be reduced
\nto 36 percent from 38 percent previously,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He added that the country's dependence on foreign loans in
\nfinancing the development projects would be further reduced in
\nthe future by raising domestic revenues both from taxes and non-
\ntaxes.<\/p>\n
He said that the tax system would be further expanded both
\nthrough the intensification of collection and the improvement of
\ntax regulations.<\/p>\n
Mar'ie said that the government would also further strengthen
\nefforts to raise state receipts from the non-tax sector such as
\nservice fees and the proceeds from the divestment of the
\ngovernment's shares in state-owned companies.<\/p>\n
He said that the government raised a significant amount of
\nmoney from the divestment of its shares in PT Indosat, PT Timah
\nand PT Telkom, which are now all listed on both domestic and
\noverseas exchanges.<\/p>\n
He said that the government would also make similar
\ndivestments through the floating of three other state-owned
\ncompanies -- Bank Negara Indonesia, PT Krakatau Steel and the
\ntoll operator Jasa Marga, which are currently preparing to go
\npublic.<\/p>\n
Funds to be raised from the sale of the government's shares in
\nthe state-owned companies would also be used to speed up the
\nrepayment of external loans with interest rates exceeding 10
\npercent.<\/p>\n
The four factions -- the Moslem-denominated United Development
\nParty (PPP), the Golongan Karya (Golkar) Party, the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party (PDI) and the Armed Forces -- asked the
\ngovernment to improve its budgetary discipline in their final
\nsubmissions on the budget plan.<\/p>\n
They also asked the government to make concerted efforts to
\ncurb the country's growing imports and to bolster exports so that
\nthe widening current account deficit could be reduced. (hen)<\/p>",
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