Concessionaires still cheating on forest fees
JAKARTA (JP): A senior government official yesterday criticized forest concessionaires for frequently failing to pay sufficient mandatory forest fees and accused them of misusing the self-assessment method entrusted to them.
Secretary-general of the Ministry of Forestry, Oetomo, told a hearing with the House of Representative's Commission IV, which oversees forestry and agricultural affairs, that such practices emerged after the government conducted post-audit checks on concessions.
He said many concessionaires also frequently misused the SAKB and SAKO documents -- needed to transport logs and processed wood respectively. He did not give figures.
As a penalty, Oetomo explained, the Ministry of Forestry issues three warnings to the concessionaires. If they still refuse to improve their performance after the warnings, their concessions are revoked.
The ministry, he added, may also reduce a concessionaire's permitted logging area if violations continue.
Executive Chairman of the Association of Indonesian Forest Concessionaires (APHI) Hendro Prastowo admitted yesterday that many of the association's members were breaking the rules.
"But the situation now is a lot better than it was a few years ago, before the forestry ministry was under the responsibility of Pak Djamaludin," he said, referring to Minister of Forestry Djamaludin Suryohadikusumo.
He refused to give figures.
"All I can say is that of some 400 members of APHI, several still tend to misuse the self-assessment responsibility given to them by the government," he told The Jakarta Post yesterday.
He said the government is now much stricter in imposing penalties and in enforcing the law, so forest companies have little chance of getting away with their offenses.
He added that Indonesia will soon be complying with ecolabeling requirements. These will allow only environmentally- sound forest products to enter the free market competition. They will be imposed by certain markets from the year 2000.
"So if concessionaires continue to be defiant, they won't have a place in the market," Hendro said.
Oetomo said yesterday that forest concessionaires who have received warnings, have had their permits revoked, or have failed to pay the mandatory forest fees, will undergo official assessment.
He acknowledged that it is presently impossible to remove the self-assessment system altogether because the limited human resources in the ministry does not allow it.
He also pointed out that if the government were to take over assessing mandatory forest payments it could easily be blamed for any errors that occur.
Forest royalties and reforestation funds are among the mandatory fees that concessionaires must pay to guarantee that forests are managed in an environmentally-sound manner. The payment of the fees also determines whether or not a concessionaire can continue operating. (pwn)