Governor's Taiwan visit criticized

Governor's Taiwan visit criticized

MANADO, North Sulawesi: A number of non-governmental
organizations and legislators criticized governor A.J. Sondakh's
visit to Taiwan, saying local officials had no sense of crisis.

Also included in the governor's entourage were Manado mayor
Wempie Frederick, a number of local officials and their wives.

Tino Kariso, coordinator of the Indonesian Development
Supervisory Institution, said both the governor and his entourage
had no sense of crisis as the provincial administration had yet
to solve the back-pay problem for civil servants in the province.

"The foreign trip is merely a waste of money and time while
the back-pay problem has been left unresolved," he said here on
Friday.

Thamrin Spaer, a member of the Manado legislature, regretted
that the mayor had not consulted with the city legislative
council about the trip.

"We will question the foreign trip at the next hearing with
the mayor. It's also important to make regulations on foreign
trips for local officials," he said. --Antara