Bappenas must account for safety fund leakage

JAKARTA (JP): The National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) must account for the leakage of Rp 8.6 trillion in the social safety net program for the needy, a government official said.

"Bappenas must be responsible for the leakage in the social safety net funds because it is the only government institution which has controlled the funds, distributed them and designed projects for their usage. It should not blame a certain political party for the leakage," Director General of Manpower Placement and Development at the Ministry of Manpower Din Samsuddin said on Friday.

State Minister of National Development Planning and Bappenas chairman Boediono said recently that part of the funds had not reached their intended recipients because they had been used by a political party.

The coordinator of a group which has protested the abuse of social safety net funds, Wardah Hafidz of the Urban Poor Consortium, has said evidence pointed to the Golkar Party abusing the funds to further their political interests.

Despite protests, the minister insisted the government would go ahead with the social safety net project to help the poor survive the economic crisis.

Funds for the 1998/1999 fiscal year amount to Rp 17.9 trillion.

Boediono has called on the Government Development Audit Agency to audit the funds' usage and bring to court those involved in the leakage.

Representative of the ruling Golkar Party at the General Elections Commission Mahadi Sinambela slammed what he said were baseless accusations.

"Golkar is ready to be punished if it is proven guilty of embezzling the funds for political activities. On the other hand, Bappenas or its officials should be given stiff sanctions if they committed faults," he said.

Din said the ministry should be allowed to take part again in the social safety net program to help ease unemployment.

The next stage of the program does not allocate funds to ministries, as the fund use is considered less urgent.

Din said the labor intensive projects and those for skilled and dismissed workers should be continued to ease unemployment.

He said during the 1998/99 fiscal year the ministry employed approximately one million workers in projects worth Rp 1 trillion. (rms)