City Planning Agency chief to be queried over permits

City Planning Agency chief to be queried over permits

JAKARTA (JP): The City Council's Commission D on public works,
environment and development affairs will soon summon the head of
the City Planning Agency, Ahmadin Ahmad, for issuing two
different permits to construct a three-story shopping complex on
a pedestrian overpass that connects the ITC Shopping Center and
Mangga Dua Mall in Mangga Dua, West Jakarta.

Councillor Mukhayar of the Justice Party (PK) faction said on
Thursday that two property developers -- PT Kempas Indah
Indonesia and PT Duta Pertiwi -- proposed to build the overpass,
and that the latter eventually got the permit to develop it,
although PT Kempas was the first company which submitted the
proposal earlier in 1996.

"We (councillors) suspect that the city administration issued
the permit to PT Duta Pertiwi because it contributed a larger
amount of money to the administration," he said at the City
Council building.

"PT Duta Pertiwi submitted Rp 800 million as commission, while
PT Kempas gave only Rp 380 million," he added.

PT Kempas secured an approval, dated July 22, 1996, to develop
the overpass from Deputy Governor for Economic and Development
Affairs Tb. M. Rais, while PT Duta Pertiwi received permission
from Governor Sutiyoso, dated April 30, 1999.

PT Kempas sued Governor Sutiyoso at the State Administrative
Court last year, but lost. The case is now being heard at the
Jakarta State Administrative High Court.

Mukhayar said that PT Duta Pertiwi also violated the
governor's approval as it had also developed the overpass into a
shopping area.

"Look, it is clearly stated in the Gubernatorial Decree No.
1129/1999 that the permit was only to develop a pedestrian
overpass, but not a shopping complex," he said, while showing a
copy of the document to The Jakarta Post.

In a hearing with Commission D on April 9, PT Duta Pertiwi
president director Stevanus Hartono denied the accusation, saying
that the money which was given to the city administration was
simply a kind of "contribution" and that the proposal had since
the beginning mentioned that it would build an overpass which
would have shops on it.

Stevanus also said that PT Duta Pertiwi had the right to
develop the bridge since it was the owner of the two buildings.

On May 1, 1997, Ahmadin Ahmad rejected Duta Pertiwi's proposal
in a meeting with the City Land Management Agency on grounds that
the city administration had already issued the permit to PT
Kempas.

"Then why did PT. Duta Pertiwi suddenly develop the overpass?
That's the reason we will summon Ahmadin Ahmad.

"I think it's not Duta Pertiwi nor Kempas' mistake, it's the
city administration's mistake," Mukhayar said. (09)