City set to cut Hotel Mulia's fine by 25%
City set to cut Hotel Mulia's fine by 25%
JAKARTA (JP): The city administration is prepared to give a 25
percent reduction in the Rp 20.5 billion (US$1.95 million)
penalty slapped on Hotel Mulia for violating spatial permits.
Deputy Governor for Economic and Development Affairs Budiardjo
Soekmadi said on Thursday the city understood the Central Jakarta
hotel's contention that it faced financial difficulties in paying
the bill due to the crisis and construction costs.
"The management has sent us a letter informing us of its
inability to pay the full amount of the penalty, and thus asked
the administration to give a reduction of the payment.
"We have discussed the management's request and decided to
give the 25 percent discount."
Budiardjo said the administration would inform the hotel of
its decision by letter in October.
"We will also give the management a chance to pay the debt in
a six-month installment basis, starting from next month."
The management and contractor of the five-star hotel was fined
last year for violating 1975 bylaw No. 4 on high-rise buildings
and 1985 bylaw No. 9 on building height regulation.
The block plan approved for the hotel project, jointly signed
by then Jakarta governor Surjadi Soedirja and former state
secretary/minister Moerdiono, allowed for construction of a 16-
story structure.
Instead, the contractor build a 40-story tower.
The US$240 million hotel was inaugurated in September last
year by former president Soeharto. Completion of the 1,008-room
hotel was speeded up so it could serve as the athlete's village
for the 19th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games held last October.
One of the hotel's owners is the Jakarta Country Club, a
subsidiary of the 1997 SEA Games Consortium, chaired by former
president Soeharto's second son Bambang Trihatmodjo, that
financed the biannual regional sporting extravaganza.
Round-the-clock construction, finished within nine months,
ensured completion of the tower before the Games' opening.
Budiardjo said the hotel management's letter asked for
consideration to be taken into account that the building was
constructed on a tight schedule and in the interest of the
nation.
"Due to the accelerated process, the hotel construction cost
more than usual as it needed sophisticated machinery and had to
set aside more payment for extra labor hours," he said in quoting
the hotel's appeal. (ind)