Bangka-Belitung officially declared 31st province

Bangka-Belitung officially declared 31st province

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Home Affairs and Regional Autonomy
Surjadi Soedirdja officially inaugurated Bangka-Belitung as the
country's 31st province on Friday, and installed Amur Muchasim
as the province's acting governor.

In a traditional and modest ceremony in the new province's
capital Pangkal Pinang, Surjadi officially assigned Amur to
establish an organization and structure for the province within
the next six months.

"Six months is the maximum period to establish the whole
structure of the province. I hope it can be finished by that
time," Surjadi said after the ceremony as quoted by Antara.

"I am sure with proper preparation, residents of the province
can elect a governor as soon as possible," he said.

The new province was previously a part of the South Sumatra
province, and is known for its tin and pepper production. The
House of Representatives passed a bill establishing the province
on Nov. 21, 2000, after months of intensive lobbying.

The bill was passed less than two months after Banten was
established as the country's 30th province.

The new province consists of two islands -- Bangka and
Belitung -- and has about 800,000 residents. Almost 30 percent of
the people in the province are ethnic Chinese, while the rest are
Malays and Javanese.

The acting governor's main tasks will be to head the temporary
provincial administration and facilitate the development of a
provincial legislative council, which will be expected to elect a
permanent governor.

Amur, along with the provincial legislative council, will be
called on to draw up the new province's draft budget for the 2001
fiscal year, which is hoped will allow for the development of the
new province to be completed next year.

Antara also reported that South Sumatra Governor Rosihan
Arsjad handed over some Rp 65 billion (US$6.8 million) of the
province's budget and Rp 29 billion of its tax revenue to the
Bangka-Belitung acting governor.

He said that with the establishment of the new province, South
Sumatra lost one-sixth of its assets. (dja)