Get rid of leeches and suckers

Riots, violence and chaos are occurring in every corner of our nation. They are beginning to spark all over the country, not unlike the spreading of forest fires in the nation in 1998. Then we could only watch helplessly the destruction of millions of hectares of forest by the manmade inferno. The government was not able to do anything to control the fires.

The government policy to contain the eruption of anarchy has been primarily dominated by concerns over security (albeit inefficiently and haphazardly done) through appeals to the people to contain their anger and cajoling them to live peacefully and harmoniously with each other.

The result has been the speeding up of the spread of the phenomena.

The real cause of our current chaos is not being dealt with properly. Our economy is the root of our anarchy. The people feel strongly that the government has severely mismanaged the economy and our natural resources. Additionally, the government has been burdening the people excessively with its bureaucratic regulations, taxes, levies, expenses, fees, tuitions, etc., not to mention the cost of bribes to smooth out the applications for permits, licenses and other administrative procedures.

People have seen purchasing power and their incomes fall steeply during the last two years. Yet certain elite groups continue to enjoy their exclusive economic privileges and purchasing power despite the monetary crisis.

Why invest a lot of people's money in the recapitalization of the ailing banks? After all, the foreign loans used to recapitalize the banks have to be paid back by the people. Do we need so many banks? Are we not encouraging people to just earn by doing anything other than earning interest from the money deposited in the banks?

Let the money circulate in the market, not in the banks. Immediately reduce the interest rate to the amount sufficient enough to cover the administration and management of money in the banks. Banks should not be allowed to profit just by charging high interest to the people. It is against fundamental Islamic values and is the root of evil and greediness. Banks should work cooperatively with the people and the government to get the economy functioning and growing healthily.

People have to learn to invest their money to run their own businesses ethically, legally and cooperatively. Banks and money institutions are basically leeches and they all engage in market gambling. So get rid of all the leeches and suckers in our life. Then, we may begin to develop a prosperous and compassionate nation.

K. PRIBADI

Cimahi, West Java