City collects Rp 8.3b in shopping center fines

JAKARTA (JP): Shopping center owners have provided a total of Rp 8.3 billion (US$3.6 million) in compensation for their failure to give sites in their buildings to small traders since 1983.

The deputy chairman of the city council's commission B, for economic affairs, Nitra Arsyad, said yesterday that gubernatorial decree No. 240/1983 stipulates that shopping center owners must provide plots for small traders.

According to another gubernatorial decree, No. 1469/1983, the compensation is Rp 135,000 per square meter of the space a shopping center owner should provide.

"But most of them have failed to be abide by the decree, and only a few have paid the compensation," Nitra, who is of the Golkar ruling group, said. He said he did not have accurate records on the number of shopping centers operating in the capital.

He just said that according to the decree 20 percent of the total space of a shopping center must be reserved for small traders.

"The city administration has spent Rp 3.9 billion on eight new markets for roadside vendors or small-scale traders," he said. The markets are located in Jl. Nusa, East Jakarta, Meruya Ilir and Kalideres in West Jakarta, Tipar Cakung and Lorong in North Jakarta, Rawa Sawah and Palmerah in Central Jakarta and Jl. H. Cokong, South Jakarta.

As many as 100,000 street vendors are now occupying the markets, while there are around 100,000 more vendors who have yet to be resettled," Nitra said.

He added that the amount of compensation is now Rp 300,000 per square meter of space to be made available. "I think this is fair. The old rate is too low now," he said.

Nitra said the building owners will benefit from the traders because they will pay the rent of the space they occupy.

The councilor also said that commission B supports a plan to make gubernatorial decree no. 240 a provincial decree.

"The plan is to make the policy stronger than just a gubernatorial decree to make it legally binding. Those violating a provincial decree will be prosecuted," he said.

Nitra said with the provincial decree the city administration will be able to force shopping centers owners to help small-scale traders.

The city administration has been trying to eliminate small scale traders, especially street vendors, from the city streets for years, but the effort is hampered by limited available space. (yns)