BI chiefs seek Rp 2.5b a year
Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The board of governors of Bank Indonesia has submitted a proposal calling for each of its eight members to receive an annual salary of over Rp 2.5 billion (US$272,296).
The proposal calls for the central bank's governor, senior deputy governor and six deputy governors each to receive a monthly pay package of between Rp 107.29 million and Rp 141.32 million.
This monthly pay package is comprised of a basic salary, contingency allowance, performance allowance and an unspecified allowance.
Under the proposal, each board member would also three incentive bonuses a year, an Idul Fitri bonus and a Christmas bonus, two annual leave bonuses, in addition to other benefits.
In total, the eight board members would receive 19 payments a year, totaling up to Rp 2.69 billion.
The proposal was submitted to House of Representatives Commission XI for finance last month and is currently being deliberated. A decision on the matter is expected by Thursday.
The pay proposal is contained in one of the eight documents submitted by the central bank, collectively titled Work Programs and Budget in 2006 of the Central Office, by Bank Indonesia to House of Representatives Commission XI. The documents were seen by The Jakarta Post on Monday. BI deputy governor Maman Soemantri, who discussed the proposal with lawmakers, could not be reached for comment.
Commission member Harry Azhar Azis of the Golkar Party said the pay proposal was inappropriate amid the financial hardships faced by the country.
Harry said this was the first time the central bank had to consult the House on pay for officials and employees, a consequence of the newly amended Law No. 3/2004 on Bank Indonesia.
In previous years, the central bank was able to determine its own pay for officials. The bank's website, however, does not contain any information on the current salaries of the board of governors.
Article 60(3) of the amended Bank Indonesia law says the central bank must submit its proposed operational expenses for the year to the House for approval.
Previously, the bank consulted with the House only on issues related to policy.
Harry said the pay proposal raised questions about whether state officials should be so generously compensated while the state was facing funding shortages for many programs.
He also said state officials at the same basic level should receive pay packages that were similar.
"If you compare this (proposal) with the salaries of the President or Vice President, it is clear the BI officials would receive so much more money while not having the same level of responsibility as, for example, the President.
"Even the President and the Vice President were harshly criticized when it was proposed that their salaries be increased, and that was a much smaller increase than for BI. I think it would be wise for them (BI governors) to give this more thought and consider whether this would be fair," he said.
The President receives a monthly salary of about Rp 62 million and the Vice President of about Rp 57 million.
The House and the central bank are scheduled to meet on Tuesday for further talks on the pay proposal.