Executive, legislature race to use up budget money

Oyos Saroso HN, The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung

The Lampung provincial administration is seeking approval from the Legislative Council to secure Rp 6,091 billion from a supplementary budget to procure 22 official cars, including seven for provincial councillors.

In turn, the Provincial Legislative Council is seeking to obtain Rp 2 billion from the council's routine budget for the procurement of 16 official cars for councillors.

The move by both the Lampung provincial administration and the Legislative Council was revealed by Ahmad Yulden Erwin, the coordinator for the Anti-Corruption Committee, a corruption watchdog in Lampung.

"They (government officials and councillors) are likely racing to spend the provincial budget. It is hard to understand why, in this economic crisis, they want to trade in their current cars, which are still in good condition, for new ones," Erwin said.

He said that the executive and legislative bodies had conspired to take the province's supplementary budget.

For the current fiscal year, the Lampung provincial administration has allocated an extra budget of Rp 100 billion, which was collected from the excess of the 2001 provincial budget worth Rp 72,436 billion, the increase in revenue split from oil and gas worth Rp 19 billion, and the remaining Rp 10 billion from provincial revenue.

Head of the Financial Bureau of the Lampung provincial administration, Mahyudin, said, however, that the proposal to purchase the 22 official cars was debatable.

"If endorsed by the Provincial Legislative Council, we'll proceed with the procurement. Otherwise, we'll withdraw the proposal."

Besides the purchase of cars, Erwin also said that the legislative council was seeking approval to buy 25 houses for the councillors.

The deputy speaker of the Lampung provincial legislative council, Mochtar Hasan, cited that one-third of the 75 council members would receive official housing this year.

The move by the councillors received strong criticism from local political observers Ari Damastuti and Muzakir Noor.

"The councillors lack the qualities to protect the public's interests. They have even asked to have their income tax covered by the provincial budget and have their transportation allowance increased due to the hike in fuel prices," Ari said.

Meanwhile, Muzakir accused the Lampung governor of having spoiled the councillors in return for their endorsement of the governor's recent annual accountability speech.

"Governor Oemarsono's move to distribute Rp 15 million to each councillor was likely connected with the endorsement of the governor's accountability speech last April," Muzakir said.

Oemarsono, however, dismissed the bribery allegation.

Meanwhile, an activist with the Lampung Legislature Watch, Armen Yasir said the governor's move was a crime.

"It's an act of stealing the people's money," Yasir, a constitutional law professor at the state Lampung University, said.