Emergency fund must be use properly: Mayor
Emergency fund must be use properly: Mayor
BOGOR (JP): Mayor Eddy Gunardi handed over a Rp 2.52 billion
state-sponsored emergency fund on Thursday to representatives of
Bogor's 68 villages and subdistricts, reminding them to make sure
its allocation was fair and honest, and that it went to the
rightful people.
"I also want to remind all related officials to seriously
supervise the distribution of the fund in order to prevent it
from being given to people based on close relationships," the
mayor said in his speech.
The fund, taken from the state budget and earmarked to help
poor residents deal with the crippling recession, was received by
heads of the villages and subdistricts and an executive of the
Community Welfare Organization (LKMD).
An LKMD executive is usually the most senior or model citizen
in a respective area.
Mayor Eddy said that he, for example, had ordered officials at
the mayoralty's inspectorate, the implementation coordination
team, and heads of districts and subdistricts to personally
supervise fund distribution at regular intervals.
"Such an effort," he said, "is badly needed in order to reach
the correct target and give greater benefits to help improve
people's lives."
Besides supervision from the state apparatus, the use and
distribution of the fund will be also directly monitored by
independent observers, including those from universities and non-
governmental organizations, Eddy said, giving no names.
The emergency aid program, funded by the National Development
Planning Board, is being conducted under the auspices of the
PDMDKE, a program designed to help people cope with the worst
effects of the ongoing economic turmoil.
The latest data available reveals that about 50,000 of Bogor's
four million population are poor.
As a comparison, Jakarta, home to some 10 million people,
received Rp 109.52 billion in emergency aid, which has sparked
heated debates due to the lack of transparency in its use.
According to head of Bogor's Development Planning Board, Deddy
S. Hamdan, the mayoralty actually received Rp 2.88 billion in
emergency aid.
"Some Rp 260 million was used for consultation fees and
another Rp 100 million to finance the operation," he explained.
About 47.5 percent of the Rp 2.52 billion earmarked for the
area will be allocated for the construction and maintenance of
public facilities, such as roads, bridges, dams and water
channels, Deddy said.
"All these works might need a labor force of 17,567 people,"
he said.
The remaining 52.5 percent of the fund will be distributed as
capital for small-scale traders, consisting of 2,765 vendors,
1,088 construction workers, 851 home industry businesspeople and
198 farmers, Deddy added. (24/bsr)