State officials to get Camrys<\/p>\n
Rendi A. Witular and Primastuti Handayani, The Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Indonesian government has opted to use Toyota Camrys as the
\nofficial car for all state officials, with Volvo S80s being used
\nto transport heads of state for next week's Asian-African Summit.<\/p>\n
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Friday that all
\ngovernment officials, up to provincial level, should use Toyota
\nCamry sedans as their operational cars, and use the car's price
\nas a ceiling for all official cars.<\/p>\n
With a special discount, the President said, each Camry, which
\ncarries 3,000cc engine under its bonnet, was priced at below Rp
\n400 million (US$42,000), lower than the market price of around Rp
\n450 million.<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, State Secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra said
\nthat the sedans were bought for around Rp 350 million each from a
\ncar showroom in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
\"From now on, I don't want to hear any (state) officials
\npurchasing operational cars priced at some Rp 900 million. All
\nofficial cars' should be priced below Rp 400 million. This is for
\nefficiency,\" Susilo said during a ceremony at the National
\nResilience Institute (Lemhannas).<\/p>\n
The call for efficiency and modest lifestyles among state
\nofficials was started by chairman of the People's Consultative
\nAssembly Hidayat Nur Wahid, who immediately declared after being
\nnamed as chairman last October that he would not be using a Volvo
\nas his official car, as he considered such cars too luxurious.<\/p>\n
Susilo said ministers and heads of state institutions would
\nuse the 3,000cc Camry sedans, while echelon I level officials
\nwould use the 2,000cc model.<\/p>\n
\"I tried the 2,000cc Camry just a few days ago. It's a nice
\ncar and it's suitable for ministers. I don't think we should use
\nVolvo sedans anymore because they are perceived by the public as
\nluxury cars,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The government has already ordered 60 Camry sedans for high-
\nranking foreign delegations attending the upcoming Asian-African
\nSummit. After the three-day Summit, the sedans will become
\nofficial cars for high-ranking government officials.<\/p>\n
However, the government will still provide 60 Volvo S80 2.3T
\ncars to serve heads of state. The cars, which have a price tag of
\naround Rp 600 million each, were being loaned by PT Indomobil
\nSukses International Tbk to Summit organizers.<\/p>\n
\"Due to the government's limited budget, the loan of the cars
\nis a great help to us,\" Rildo Ananda Anwar, deputy state
\nsecretary on administration, said in a press conference on
\nFriday.<\/p>\n
Indomobil President Director Gunadi Sindhuwinata said that his
\ncompany has put mechanics on standby and provided training for
\nmembers of the Presidential Guard who will drive the cars.<\/p>\n
Besides the Volvos, Indomobil has also loaned Summit
\norganizers 80 Nissan X-Trail 2.5St for protocol, 120 Nissan
\nTerrano Spirit S2 for security and eight Hino buses.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/state-officials-to-get-camrys-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}