Basofi's van buying spree sparks criticism
Basofi's van buying spree sparks criticism
SURABAYA (JP): East Java governor Basofi Sudirman has come
under fire for buying 640 Isuzu Panther vans worth Rp 23 billion
(US$9.7 million) for subdistrict chiefs without consulting the
legislative council.
The multipurpose vans are intended to make the subdistrict
chiefs more mobile in handling activities related to the 1997
general election.
Basofi's critics suspect that the vans were handed over on
Aug. 7 as "incentives" for the local officials to mobilize
support for the ruling political organization, Golkar.
The criticism was leveled Thursday by councilors from Golkar's
rivals, the United Development Party (PPP) and the Indonesian
Democratic Party (PDI).
One PDI councilor said that the provincial government spends
too much money on its employees while it only allocates 16.6
percent of its Rp 100 billion development fund for vital
activities such as poverty reduction.
"This misplaced priority will encourage large-scale leakage in
the government budget and confuse the public," said Fatimah Hany
Harnanik, the PDI's spokeswoman in the council.
Meanwhile, the PPP criticized the governor for his failure to
consult with the legislative council before going on his buying
spree.
"The provincial budget revisions have not even been approved
yet by the legislative council and the government has already
handed over the vans bought with money from the state budget,"
PPP councilor Mu'thy Nurhadi said.
Written on the sides of each deep blue colored van is "Back to
the Village" -- Basofi's slogan for his development policy that
focuses on rural areas.
Basofi argued that the subdistrict chiefs "urgently need" the
vans to replace their aging Mitsubishi vans.
He said he would explain the purchase to the legislative
council in due time. "Allegations that the vans are intended as
incentives for subdistrict chiefs are groundless," he told The
Jakarta Post.
An informed source told the Post that of the 640 vans, 32 are
bonus vans, offered by car dealers to the government.
Mu'thy said the vans were bought at the expense of other
needs. (15/pan)