Developers faulted on promotional acts
Developers faulted on promotional acts
JAKARTA (JP): Housing developers overexpose their promotional
offers compared to more important information on housing
projects, a consumer advocate said.
Ideally an exhibition should present visitors with
proportional and adequate information, Sudaryatmo said at the
site of the Indonesia House Exhibition '96.
"An exhibition is a kind of consumers' instrument to obtain
their rights, among others the right to information," Sudaryatmo
of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation said Saturday.
The foundation has a stand at this year's Indonesia House
Exhibition '96, organized by private firm Debindomulti
Adhiswasti. The event runs through Aug. 18.
"Important information concerns the developer's legal status,"
Sudaryatmo said, citing public housing ministry regulation No.
09/ 1995.
"While supplying information, the developers can tell
consumers their promotional offers such as air conditioners or
cars or anything else used to attract consumers," said
Sudaryatmo, who works in the organization's complaint department.
After all, he said, consumers want a house -- not an air
conditioner or a car.
The advocate was commenting on a statement by State Minister
of Public Housing Akbar Tandjung when opening the event on Friday
afternoon.
Akbar said hundreds of consumers have sent letters to a
special post office box set up by his office for complaints
regarding housing.
Akbar said the government would not hesitate to revoke the
licenses of developers in Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi who fail to
implement their housing development plans.
The licenses would then be given to more trustworthy
developers, he said as quoted by Antara on Friday.
From thousands of hectares allocated to developers in the
three areas, only a few houses have been built, Akbar said.
"The government is now evaluating whether or not those
developers are implementing their plans," he said.
He further said that in house purchasing contracts there is
always a clause which mentions the penalty consumers face if they
do not fulfill requisites, "while there is no sanction imposed on
a developer which reneges on its promise", Akbar said.
Akbar expressed hope that developers do not solely seek short-
term profits, which might impair their reputations.
Yosef, a bank officer who visited the exhibition Saturday,
said he would rather see the location of a house first before he
decided to buy it.
"I would not be easily convinced just by seeing and hearing
information given by developers in this exhibition," he said.
This year's housing exhibition features 119 developers which
are offering 170 housing, office, and resort projects in Jakarta,
Bogor, Tangerang, Bekasi, Depok, Serang, Batam Island,
Yogyakarta, Bali, Karawang, Anyer Beach and Carita.(26)