Annual Session good business for some

The MPR Annual Session has provided a very lucrative business opportunity for some, including the cooperative of MPR staff members who organized a "fair" in the lobby of the MPR building.

Deputy spokesman for the MPR's secretary general office, Aip Suherman, disclosed that the cooperative took the initiative to invite businesses to the fair "to tone down the tense event", taking rent for the stands as compensation.

This year, he said, the cooperatives had rented booths at between Rp 2 million and Rp 3 million, depending on the location.

There are more than 30 booths selling various products, ranging from batik clothing, suits and ties, furniture and snacks to houses in remote areas outside Jakarta.

"But the stands offering public services are organized by the public relations bureau of the MPR secretary general office. We don't charge those booths," Suherman said.

He said the bureau had 10 stands, mostly for jamu (herbal medicine and drinks) and beverage producers, which offered their products to visitors and legislators for free.

Suherman added that there was no cost for the nine mini studios for private television stations and three mini studios for radio stations.

"They were only charged for the construction of the booths, the use of telephone lines and electricity for ten days. But we didn't charge them for the use of space," he said.

Most of reporters however claimed that they had to pay to rent the space, which started from Rp 1.75 million, which was negotiable.

"We brought our own booths, air conditioners, telephones and installed the power supply ourselves. But we still had to pay for the site, plus another Rp 200,000 for security," a manager of one of the mini studios, who asked for anonymity, revealed. --JP