Construction of office halted

Construction of office halted

SEMARANG, Central Java: Governor Soewardi agreed last week to
postpone the construction of a Rp 9.9 billion (US$1 million)
retired civil servants headquarters.

Soewardi said he had to shelve the project indefinitely due to
the current economic crisis.

"We must prioritize our funds and efforts to improve people's
welfare who are suffering from the crisis," Soewardi was quoted
by Antara as saying.

The plan to build the new headquarters for the local
Association of Retired Civil Servants (PWRI) received strong
opposition from the provincial legislative body and
environmentalists last year.

Critics said it was a waste of money. The governor, however,
insisted that PWRI urgently needed a better office. (prb)