Bappenas denies plan to move administration

JAKARTA (JP): Chairman of the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) Ginandjar Kartasasmita denied yesterday there were plans to relocate the center of administration to Jonggol, Bogor, West Java.

The Board had not yet thought about the relocation of the administration from Jakarta to the Jonggol regency, he said.

"The board and consortium PT Bukit Jonggol Asri has discussed developing a self-sufficient city in Jonggol," Ginandjar said after addressing a cultural meeting at the Taman Ismail Marzuki Art Center in Central Jakarta.

The consortium plans to develop a new city on 30,000 hectares covering 24 villages in Jonggol. There are rumors the consortium plans to relocate the center of administration from Jakarta.

Jonggol's self-sufficient city would be the biggest private project in Jakarta and its surrounding areas of Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi.

According to the Kontan tabloid, the consortium's plan allocates land for presidential and several ministerial offices.

Ginandjar said the plan for a self-sufficient city was good because it would reduce Jakarta's burden.

"However, the Board has not yet thought about or planned to convert Jonggol into a new capital of Indonesia," he said.

"The plan is to develop Jonggol into a self-sufficient city like Cikarang and Serpong," said Ginandjar, who is chairman of the national spatial planning coordinating agency.

Ginandjar said the consortium must respect the local administration's rules about land appropriation in Jonggol.

"The sale of land from the owners to the consortium must be based on mutual agreement, without pressure from any party," he said.

Forestry

Meanwhile, Achmed B. Suhanda, the Ministry of Forestry's Director for Forest Planning said the consortium had proposed 3,100 hectares of land to replace the forest it will take over from the government.

Suhanda said the consortium claims the proposed sites, in the Cianjur, Ciamis and Sumedang regencies, West Java, can be converted into forest.

Government regulations state private companies that want to take over state forests must replace forests elsewhere in the province.

In this case, Bukit Jonggol Asri should be able to provide 6,100 hectares of forests to replace the Jonggol area it plans to acquire.

Suhanda said because people already lived in the Jonggol forest area, the area provided by the consortium would be exactly the same as the one it got from the government.

"If the forests were unoccupied, for instance, the ratio would be different; the private company would have to look for a larger area in exchange for what they get from us," he said.

The government stipulates areas proposed for replacement should be non-forested areas suitable for conversion into forests and should border with existing forests.

"The replacement can either be forests, or they can be barren but productive land. In the latter case, the private company has the responsibility to reforest the area," he said.

Suhanda said government officials were double-checking and measuring the 3,100-hectare forest proposed by Bukit Jonggol Asri.

"The consortium has obtained our principle permit for this 3,100 hectares. But only after the measurements are complete, can we give them our final approval," he said.

He said the consortium had proposed another 3,000-hectare area near Bogor for its project. This proposal has not yet got a principle permit. (sur/pwn)