Voluntary donations?<\/p>\n
In less than five months from now, Jakarta will be proud host
\nto the 19th Southeast Asian Games -- or SEA Games, as it is more
\npopularly known -- which is scheduled to open on Oct. 11 with
\npomp and ceremony at the capital's Senayan sports complex.<\/p>\n
Without a doubt, the holding of such an important event of
\nthis magnitude warrants special efforts, which any good citizen
\nwould be proud to participate in. Jakarta, after all, is the
\ncapital of Southeast Asia's largest country. Jakarta's good name
\nwill be dependent on the manner in which it organizes the games.<\/p>\n
Not only must it prepare its athletes so that they will be
\nable to compete with honor with fellow athletes from
\nparticipating regional countries. The sports facilities must be
\nin prime condition, which means the upgrading, and perhaps
\nextension, of many existing facilities. Proper accommodations and
\nsmooth transportation must be prepared for guest athletes.
\nService staff must be hired and trained, and so forth, and so
\nforth...<\/p>\n
Needless to say, all of these things cost money. And so, there
\nis no need to be surprised by the fact that, by a Minister of
\nSocial Services' decree, an organizing consortium -- called the
\nPT Angkasa Ronagraha -- was recently set up to raise funding.
\nFunding included Rp 40 billion (US$16.5 million) from the public,
\nplus donations amounting to Rp 20 billion from companies such as
\nNational Panasonic, Tiger Beer, Konika, Aqua and Nikon.<\/p>\n
The consortium's vice-chairman, Bambang Yogasugama, has said
\nthat this will be done by distributing 17,750,000 stickers among
\nthe public, including 16,000 stickers at a set price of Rp 1,000
\neach, and 1,750,000 that cost between Rp 2,500 and Rp 50,000
\neach. The consortium is cooperating with state-owned electricity
\ncompany PLN, water supply company PAM, telecommunications company
\nPT Telkom, and with hotels and airports in all 27 provinces of
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
The stickers, according to Bambang, will not burden the
\npublic, since they will only be sold to those with money.
\nBesides, the money raised by the stickers is small in comparison
\nto the total Rp 101 billion (US$42 million) which the event is
\nexpected to cost. Also, as Indonesian National Sports Council
\nchairman Wismoyo Arismunandar assured reporters, \"everything has
\nbeen planned effectively. There is no money being wasted. No one
\nis taking advantage of it.\"<\/p>\n
If so, how can we explain the objections that have been raised
\nto the arrangement? Complaints, for example, have been heard from
\npeople who object to the consortium automatically adding
\n\"voluntary\" donations to their monthly telephone or electricity
\nbills. Moviegoers and housewives have also complained about the
\napparently compulsory SEA Games charges that are added to cinema
\ntickets or shopping bills.<\/p>\n
A councilor in Jakarta's city legislature has advised people
\nwith low incomes to muster the courage in refusing to contribute
\nto the games. For many people, even those who most of us might
\nnot consider belonging to low-income groups, the expenditure of
\neven a mere Rp 1,000 is something that is carefully considered.
\nBut perhaps objections are not so much against the amount levied
\nas they are against the ostensibly arbitrary manner in which
\nJakarta's population is burdened with extra charges every time a
\nmajor public event comes looming into sight.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) suggests that the
\npublic's rights be respected and the custom of slapping extra
\nfees on public utility bills for the purpose of collecting
\ndonations for events be abandoned. More importantly, any use of
\nmoney collected from the public should be audited by a public
\naccountant and should be published to prevent abuse. This is
\ncertainly a good suggestion to heed.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/voluntary-donations-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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