Councilors, YLKI query resumption of TV tax

JAKARTA (JP): City councilors and the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) have strongly questioned the justification for state-owned television station TVRI to resume collecting fees from television owners in Greater Jakarta later this month.

Councilor Rusjdi Hamka of the United Development Party (PPP) said yesterday few people were willing to pay the fee because they preferred to watch the other five, private, television stations.

"The private television stations always have better programs, including news reports, films and other feature programs, and all of them are free," said Rusjdi, who is also the City Council's deputy speaker.

PPP faction chairman Achmad Suaidy said the fee, which was stopped in 1995, was intended to finance improvements to the quality of TVRI's programs.

"Without significant improvement of its programs, it's natural if people think that it is just wasting money to pay the fee," said Suaidy.

The fee used to be Rp 1,000 a month.

YLKI chairwoman Tini Hadad said people had filed complaints about the fees to the foundation.

"The public are questioning whether there are legal grounds for TVRI to do so," said Tini yesterday.

People, she said, were reluctant to pay the fee because they did not know whether the fee was a tax for their television set or for watching TVRI.

"The fee can't be a tax because people have already paid the tax when buying the television set. If the fee was for watching the programs, it would not be fair to those who did not watch TVRI at all," Tini said.

Besides, she said, there had been no improvement in TVRI's programs.

"In fact, they're getting worse," Tini said.

Announcement

TVRI, via its news broadcasts, has announced recently that TVRI personnel accompanied by security guards -- all in their uniforms -- will visit houses in Jakarta and its surrounding area to collect the television fees.

The station based its mission on a presidential decree issued in 1990 on collecting television fees.

The decree, however, does not clearly describe the terms of punishment against those who refuse to pay because it only emphasizes public awareness.

Thus, according to Tini, a law that allows someone or an institution to collect public fees could be called legal only if it has received public support through the local council or House of Representatives.

"If it has a legal basis, I'm sure people will agree to pay," she said, urging TVRI to propose a legal basis for the collection of the fee.

In its announcement last week, TVRI said that it would also deploy members of Bakorstanasda Jaya, the city branch of the Agency for Coordinating Defense and National Stability, to accompany TVRI personnel to collect the fees.

The plan, however, immediately sparked public protests. People worried that the presence of Bakorstanasda personnel, who are Armed Forces members, would only be used as a means to threaten people to pay.

"YLKI opposed the involvement of Bakorstanasda in the collection of the fee. The security approach is no longer necessary. Bakorstanasda's involvement is not proportional and could lead to new problems," Tini said. (ste/bsr)