Council seeks closure of warehouses in W. Jakarta
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Councillors are urging the Jakarta administration to close down some 50 warehouses operating illegally since 1998 in Tegal Alur and Kamal subdistricts in West Jakarta.
They also questioned why West Jakarta municipality officials seemed to be turning a blind eye to the warehouses.
"Officials only come down hard on violations committed by ordinary people, but do nothing against violations by big business," said Muhammad Arifin, a councillor from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), on Wednesday.
Arifin, a member of the City Council's legal and administrative affairs commission, also voiced suspicions of collusion and corruption involving officials and businessmen to ensure the continued operation of the illegal warehouses.
The existence of the some 50 illegal warehouses -- 20 in Tegal Alur and 30 in Kamal -- was revealed by Commission D for development affairs on Tuesday following visits to the two subdistricts.
West Jakarta municipal secretary Chaeruddin acknowledged the existence of 50 illegal warehouses in the two districts but offered no explanations as to how their continued operation was possible.
He said during a hearing with Commission A on Wednesday that there were 150 warehouses in the two subdistricts, including the illegal ones, which had mostly been in existence since 1998.
According to Chaeruddin, the 50 illegal warehouses were built without permits, or with permits but outside designated areas, including in residential areas.
He provided no specific information on either type of illegal warehouse.
West Jakarta building agency staffer Ina Panjaitan said her agency had issued a number of warnings to the owners of the illegal warehouses. She admitted, however, that the warnings had not been followed up by enforcement action.
For his part, Chaeruddin said the administration had not shut down the illegal warehouses for fear of causing job losses as they employed hundreds of people.
However, another Commission A member, Marthin Octavianus Makatita, said this was no excuse for the West Jakarta administration to not enforce the law.
Marthin said he suspected that officials had not taken action as they were receiving bribes from the warehouse owners.
"There must be something happening when these illegal warehouses have been allowed to continue operating for years. I believe that corruption is afoot here," said Marthin, a councillor from the Golkar Party.
Commission A chairman Achmad Suaidy said the commission's members would soon tour the two subdistricts to gather further information.