Customs office seized Rp 3t in illegal goods

JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta Customs and Excise office is storing illegally imported goods worth Rp 3 trillion (US$ 315.8 million) seized over the past six months, its outgoing chief said on Tuesday.

Office head Roy R. Lino told visiting members of City Council Commission C for financial affairs most of the goods were not equipped with appropriate invoices or brought into the country by fake companies which imported electronic goods and luxury cars.

Among the seized goods were 130 used luxurious cars worth a total of Rp 40 billion, Roy said at his office in Tanjung Priok harbor, north Jakarta.

The cars, each worth between Rp 300 million to Rp 500 million, are now kept in warehouses and containers belonging to Jakarta International Container Terminal (JITC) and Pelabuhan Indonesia II port operators.

Several Audi TT Coupe sport cars, Prado Land Cruiser, Mercedes Benz, and many other used luxury cars are waiting for auction, as the North Jakarta District Court is processing the cases.

"One of the invoices was attached to some diesel engines and motorcycle spare parts, but when we checked the containers, we found two Mercedes Benz cars behind the stacks of engines," Roy said.

In another case, he added, the invoice stated that the goods were imported by a certain company, but when the customs and excise office requested import tax for the shipment, the firm claimed to have never ordered the merchandise.

The Custom and Excise Office also seized electronic goods such as TV and VCD sets and other merchandise mostly from Asia.

Roy said his office needs a plot of land on which storehouses could be built to keep the goods pending a court ruling.

"We need at least 2 hectares of land to build warehouses near our existing office," Roy said without elaborating.

Roy said during his six-month tenure, his office had revoked the license of 300 importers for their involvement in counterfeit documents, but only 30 of them met the requirements necessary to go to trial.

He said the main problem was presenting evidence to the court, which required summoning producers of imported goods to Jakarta, while the fake company never showed up.

"It needs courage and consistency to uphold the law, because smugglers are becoming more sophisticated in doing their business," Roy said.

He said his office contributed Rp 4.1 trillion to state revenue last year, and has set a target of Rp 6.2 trillion this year.

Replacement

City councillors visited the port to inspect the harbor's facilities and studied the possibility of taking over the port management from central government in line with regional autonomy.

Santayana Kiemas of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) predicted that incoming revenue from the port's management could cover half the city annual budget.

Head of the commission, Amarullah Asbah, said due to his achievement, the City Council should seek every avenue to keep Roy in his current post.

Minister of Finance Prijadi Praptosuhardjo announced on Jan. 9 a major reshuffle in his office, which included the replacement of Roy with Endang Tata.

"We must take our hats off to appreciate the good work of Roy. We sincerely regret his replacement," said Amarullah.

He said Roy's substitution breached the spirit of regional autonomy for failing to heed the wishes of the City Council.

"I have told Governor Sutiyoso to speak to central government as the changing of officers must be informed to the city administration and city council beforehand," Amarullah said.

Roy refused to comment on his removal, saying that his replacement must have met the standards set for the post.

His replacement will be inducted on Feb. 5. (07)