40% of Riau residents in poverty
40% of Riau residents in poverty
PEKANBARU, Riau: Rich in natural resources and home to the
country's largest privately owned oil and gas company, 40 percent
of Riau's three million residents live below the poverty line,
Governor Saleh Djasit said.
"I am ashamed when people abroad say that Riau is so rich
while in fact our wealth is hollow," said Saleh on Wednesday.
The province is one of Indonesia's major producers of forestry
and agricultural products. It is also home to American-based PT
Caltex Indonesia, which after state-owned PT Pertamina is the
largest oil and gas company in Indonesia.
During the three decades of the Soeharto regime, much of the
money generated by companies in the regions ended up in
Jakarta's coffers.
The 1999 autonomy law aimed to rectify this by allotting a
greater share of the money to the regions.
Saleh said his administration hoped to reduce poverty by
boosting activity in the province's rural economy. To that end,
he said, his office had increased its budget to Rp 100 billion
(about US$11 million) from Rp 70 billion last year.
"We admit that the money we have disbursed has been
insufficient, so we haven't as yet been able to meet the needs of
the people," he said. -- Antara
;JP;bkm;
ANPAa..r..
Across-Cirebon-robbery
Man shot in Rp100m robbery
JP/ /Across
Man shot in Rp100m robbery
CIREBON, West Java: An employee of a money exchange was shot
in the hand during a daylight robbery in the town of Cirebon on
Wednesday that netted Rp 100 million (about US$11,000).
The victim, Tan Ko Ling, 56, works for the currency exchange
company Kim Valas located on Jl. Pekiringan, according to Cirebon
Police detective chief Adj. Comr. Taufik Asrori.
The robbery took place as Ko Ling was returning from a bank
where he had withdrawn Rp 100 million. Taufik said the incident
happened about two minutes away from the Kim Valas office.
"We suspect that the victim was followed (from the bank) by
four men on two RX King motorbikes," the officer said.
Ko Ling was shot in the palm of his left hand when he resisted
the robbers. "The first shot didn't hit him but the second one
pierced his left hand," said Taufik. -- Antara
;JP:bkm;
ANPAa..r..
Across-Semarang-drug-arrest
Car dealer nabbed over drugs
JP/5/Across
Car dealer nabbed for drugs
SEMARANG, Central Java: Police here said on Wednesday they had
arrested the owner of the Auto Plaza car showroom for an alleged
drug party with three women at a karaoke club located in a
shopping mall in the Central Java town of Semarang.
The showroom owner, Agus, 53, was arrested along with a
friend, Widodo, 57, and three women identified only as MY, SF and
MT, all 21 years old.
"Although we did not find any drugs on them their urine tests
turned up positive, so they remain under arrest and we will bring
this case to court," the head of the Semarang Police's narcotics
unit, Adj. Comr. Sidiq Hanifi, said.
He said when the police raided the club they found empty
plastic pouches which they believe the suspects used to store
crystal amphetamine, or shabu-shabu. -- Antara