1. Taxi -- 6 col, 1 line 1 x 36
1. Taxi -- 6 col, 1 line 1 x 36
City contradicts itself on taxi licenses
Contradicting public statements that the city administration has
temporarily shut the door to any requests for new taxi permits,
Governor Sutiyoso quietly issued a decree that allows new taxi
companies to enter the overcrowded market.
City Land Transportation Agency head Rustam Effendy Sidabutar
said on Monday that Sutiyoso issued a decree in 2002 allowing new
taxi operators to open shop.
"Gubernatorial Decree No. 214/2002 stipulates that we can
allow operation permits for at least 2,384 taxis to be issued,"
Rustam announced at City Hall on Monday.
Rustam's announcement suggested that the presence of PT Primer
Metro Transindo was necessary to meet the demand for taxis in the
capital.
PT Primer came under the spotlight after Deputy Governor Fauzi
Bowo claimed his signature had been forged on a 2003 letter
approving the issuance of the company's license to operate 300
taxis in the capital. The revelation, however, suggested that any
investigation would focus on forgery.
A senior official close to the case, who asked for anonymity,
said the City Audit Agency suspected that three city officials
were involved in the forgery case.
The three, identified only as NA, BG and RS, are all still
active civil servants. They currently head different divisions
with the City Land Transportation Agency, City Economy
Development Bureau and City Cooperatives and Small and Medium
Enterprises Bureau.
"The City Audit Agency will also recommend to Jakarta Governor
Sutiyoso that they be dismissed owing to their serious
wrongdoings," he said.
Sutiyoso was not available for comment on Monday as he was
abroad.
Rustam said based on the decree, his agency along with the
City Economy Development Bureau decided to process a proposal
from PT Primer in 2003.
Rustam's statement concerning the gubernatorial decree is in
stark contrast to an official statement that the administration
had temporarily stopped issuing permits for new taxis in the city
owing to the overcrowded market.
According to data from the City Land Transportation Agency, at
least 30 taxi operators are licensed to operate 23,000 taxis, but
only 21,200 taxis are operating.
Fauzi said earlier that the city administration had received
complaints from Jakarta taxi operators that many taxi fleets with
licenses to operate on the outskirts of Jakarta, namely in Depok,
Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi, were operating in the capital.
"We have temporarily stopped the issuance of new permits for
taxis to maintain the business at a healthy level," Fauzi said
when announcing the alleged forgery of his signature to issue a
business license for taxi company PT Primer.
According to councillor Muhayar Rustamudin of Commission D for
transportation and development affairs, the city administration
stopped issuing new taxi permits in 2001.
Meanwhile, councillor Sayogo Hendrosoebroto, who chairs
Commission D, lamented the case and blamed the administration's
failure to publicly announce any new policies.
"The administration has long run a closed management, making
any information it provides so expensive. It needs to be more
transparent by publicly announcing every policy it makes.
Otherwise, it will lose all credibility when unscrupulous people
take advantage of such a situation, like in the case of PT
Primer," Sayogo of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
faction told The Jakarta Post.
Commenting on the case, Muhayar said that the administration
should annul PT Primer's operation permit because it was
defective.
The media became aware of the case only when Jakarta Deputy
Governor Fauzi Bowo claimed early this month that his signature
had been forged.
Fauzi emphasized that the document was fake. However, the
paperwork has been processed by relevant agencies in the
administration and PT Primer has been issued a permit for 50
cabs.
Jakarta Police said their investigation into the case might
reveal that city officials were involved in the offense.
2. Nurlaila -- 2 col, 3 lines 3 x 16
Former students
lend support to
fired teacher
About 50 former students of SMPN 56 junior high school
demonstrated on Monday at the State Administrative Court in East
Jakarta in support of teacher Nurlaila, who is suing Governor
Sutiyoso over her dismissal.
"We have come to support our beloved teacher. She does not
deserve to be treated like this. We want to pressure the judges
to side with the people, not the state officials," said Aditia, a
former student of SMPN 56, which was located in Melawai, South
Jakarta, before being closed down by the administration last
year.
"Nurlaila is a living example of the saying 'heroes without
medals'. Instead of being punished, she should be honored. This
proves that there is no appreciation for teachers here," he said.
Aditia is one of hundreds of SMPN 56 students who were
transferred to different schools in South Jakarta after their
school was closed.
SMPN 56 shut down after being involved in a land swap deal
between the Ministry of National Education and PT Tata Disantara,
a company owned by former manpower minister Abdul Latief.
Nurlaila, who taught civics, is the only SMPN 56 teacher who
refused to accept a transfer to the school's new location in
Jeruk Purut, South Jakarta.
She was fired last December by gubernatorial decree, though
her dismissal was made retroactive to February 2004. According to
the decree, by refusing a transfer she had abandoned her duties.
The court was scheduled on Monday to hear arguments from
lawyers representing Sutiyoso. However, the lawyers from the
Jakarta Administration Legal Office requested an additional week
to finish their arguments.
Presiding judge Kadar Slamet then offered Nurlaila's lawyers
the opportunity to read out their client's demands.
"Considering that this case has attracted the attention of the
media and the public, I decided to give the plaintiff's lawyers a
chance to read out their demands, to help the public understand
the case," Kadar said.
Of the 20 lawyers representing Nurlaila, four took turns
reading out an 11-page document that included the demand that the
governor annul Nurlaila's dismissal and reinstate her full rights
as a civil servant, including the payment of her salary and
benefits dating back to 2003.
Endang Sumardi, the lone defense lawyer who attended the
session, said Governor Sutiyoso would not annul Nurlaila's
dismissal, which he called appropriate for the situation.
"A civil servant should be willing to do his or her job
wherever he or she is instructed to do so," Endang said.(006)
3. Waste -- 4 col, 1 line 1 x 36
Waste to be sent back to the Netherlands
The government will soon return 20 containers of hazardous waste
to the Netherlands that are now in storage in the international
container terminal at Tanjung Priok port in North Jakarta.
State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witoelar said on
Monday that the Netherlands government had expressed its
readiness to take back the hazardous waste, which had been sent
from Amsterdam last month.
"In principle, the Netherlands is ready to accept the waste.
We are now preparing a technical mechanism on how to return the
waste there," Witoelar told the press conference.
At least 20 containers of hazardous domestic waste have been
stored in the Tanjung Priok container terminal since late last
month as no one had claimed them.
Hermin Rosita, an assistant to the State Minister for the
Environment, said that the importer of the waste had used a false
address in Jakarta.
"When we checked the address of the importer in Kemang, South
Jakarta, it turned out to be a cafe," said Hermin.
She could not say when the waste would be sent back to the
Netherlands, but said that her office would coordinate with other
agencies -- the port management, customs office, and water
police.
According to Witoelar, the government would continue to pay
serious attention to waste trafficking, which he said involved
international crime syndicates in the same was as people and drug
trafficking did.
"We will not tolerate hazardous waste being sent here from
foreign countries," he said, adding that his office had managed
to persuade Singapore to accept 60 bags of hazardous waste sent
to Galang island, Riau province, last year.
He said that Singapore agreed to accept the waste during talks
between Singapore and Indonesia in the secretariat of the Basel
Convention on May 10 and May 11
Both Indonesia and Singapore are signatories to the Basel
Convention, which is intended to resolve disputes on waste
shipments.
In the joint press statement issued after the negotiation,
Singapore did not recognize that the material on Galang island as
hazardous waste, but said that it was ready to accept it.
According to Hermin, the waste would be sent to Singapore on
Wednesday.
4. Roobing -- 4 col, 1 line 1 x 36
Robbers break into Bukit Sentul house
Four robbers armed with sharp weapons broke into a house in the
Bogor's Bukit Sentul housing complex, tied up the house's owners
and got away with several sets of jewelry and Rp 10 million in
cash early on Monday.
The thieves broke into the house through the guest room window
at about 3:00 a.m. when the house's owner, Hartoyo, 45, his
family members and a maid were asleep.
"Without any difficulty, the robbers tied up all the family
members. They then forced them to hand over all their precious
belongings," said Effendi, a witness and a relative of Hartoyo.
Effendi said he believed the robbers had entered the complex
through the back because none of the security guards had seen
them.
"They must have entered the housing complex through a back
way, which hasn't been fenced. The guards also don't monitor out
there," he said.
Riris, the neighborhood chief, said robberies had been
frequent at the complex because of the incomplete security.
Police said they were investigating the case and attempting to
track down the robbers.
Babakan sub-precinct detectives chief Second Insp. Boing
Subandriyo said police had questioned several witnesses along
with the victims.
"We have checked the crime scene and ... I have ordered my
officers to look for people as described by the witnesses," he
said.