Unjustified levies<\/p>\n
During World War II, when the Dutch anticipated an attack by
\nJapan on the Netherlands East Indies, they asked for help from
\nthe Americans and other allies. The Dutch were disappointed,
\nhowever, because what arrived did not live up to their
\nexpectations. The Dutch said that the help was too little and too
\nlate.<\/p>\n
When I look at the situation now in fighting corruption or
\nillegal levies, I see the same thing; we are doing too little and
\ntoo late. Illegal levies have existed for a long time. Ask any
\nbusinessperson who deals with the bureaucracy and you will get
\nthe almost identical answer that nothing can be done if you do
\nnot participate in this illegal activity. Anticipation is a must
\nbecause for businesspeople time is money. What they lose in
\nillegal levies they try to get it back from their customers. Are
\nthese levies so secret that the government cannot detect them?<\/p>\n
I am sure the government knows all about the levies. In his
\nstate address of Aug. 16, 1976, the President said: \"Government
\nofficials are servants of the community and not the other way
\naround. They should not commercialize their position by only
\nperforming their duties when they can expect something in return
\nor be reluctant to do their job when there is no prospect of
\ngetting a reward.\"<\/p>\n
The government's ongoing attempt to abolish illegal levies is
\ntoo late, because the President already warned the bureaucracy
\nabout these levies 20 years ago.<\/p>\n
But we must not forget that the President, in the same
\naddress, also appealed to businesses: \"To the business community,
\nI appeal not to give grease money in any form to the officials,
\nwhose duty is to serve the people. Such gifts are poison, which
\ncan destroy discipline and wreck the existing law and order and
\nthe honesty of the officials.\"<\/p>\n
If by chance a Don Quixote businessman courageously but
\nfoolishly take it upon himself to stop paying these illegal
\nlevies and do things according to the existing regulations, the
\nfirst thing he will be faced with is saying goodbye to business.<\/p>\n
The government knows this, but because almost everybody is
\ninvolved, everything is kept quiet. The levy monster has become
\nbigger and fiercer. Now, on the initiative of the Minister of
\nManpower, the government has started to take serious action
\nagainst its bureaucratic evils.<\/p>\n
Why didn't the government fight the monster when it was still
\na baby? At the beginning the government did something but it was
\ntoo little.<\/p>\n
The President has reiterated that corruption is immoral and
\ndestructive to development. When corruption is deep rooted,
\nhowever, it becomes a way of life and people try to justify it.<\/p>\n
Some observers say that in developing countries corruption
\nmight have a positive side, because it greases the wheels of the
\neconomy, lubricates commerce and helps overcome red tape.<\/p>\n
As Pancasila people, though, we cannot accept the theory that
\nthe end justifies means. This smells like communism. So we should
\nobserve religion and abide by the existing laws and regulations.
\nIt is not a matter of what we get, but, more importantly, how we
\nget it.<\/p>\n
SOEGIH ARTO<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/unjustified-levies-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }