'Bajaj' owners thumb nose at Kancil

'Bajaj' owners thumb nose at Kancil

JAKARTA: Dozens of bajaj (three-wheeled taxi) owners protested
the Organization of Land Transportation Owners (Organda) at its
office in Tebet, South Jakarta, rejecting the plan to retire
their Indian-made vehicles.

"It's an unrealistic policy. There are currently 15,000 bajaj
in the city. How can the administration replace all the
vehicles," Hizar Gultom, one of the owners, said on Friday.

The owners' protest came immediately after Governor Sutiyoso
unveiled his plan to replace bajaj with the four-wheeled,
Indonesian-made Kancil.

Kancil producer PT Kancil Automotive Industries has offered to
buy bajaj for Rp 5 million each, with the money to be used to
make a down payment on a Kancil, which costs Rp 34 million. The
owners must also pay Rp 50,000 a day in installment to pay off
the vehicle, the same price as renting bajaj.

Hizar said the drivers rejected the Rp 5 million (US$588)
offer for their bajaj, because the market price for a new one is
Rp 20 million.

PT Kancil said that it had only produced 100 Kancil so far to
replace the 14,000-strong bajaj fleet throughout the capital. --
Antara