Home industry village urges council action

JAKARTA (JP): Businesspeople living in the small industry village of Pulogadung, East Jakarta, have urged the city council to help them obtain ownership rights to their houses.

In a meeting with a group of visiting councilors on Tuesday in their neighborhood, 500 residents of the special home industry community said they had faithfully paid their housing payment installments in a bid to acquire the land titles under a scheme set up by former governor Soeprapto.

In 1983, Soeprapto issued a gubernatorial decree stating that the residents could obtain titles for their respective houses under a 15-year-long installment scheme.

"The policy was replaced during the term of governor Wiyogo Atmodarminto in 1988 and (was never reinstated under) Surjadi Soedirdja," Oman Abdurahman, who manages three houses for his home industry businesses, told the councilors of Commission C for financial affairs.

Under the current policy, the businesspeople are only allowed to rent the properties in the area, Oman added.

The 44-hectare small industry village contains 436 houses with 565 families running various home industries, such as textile, tanning and furniture businesses.

The houses, which range from six meters by six meters to six meters by eight meters, were offered to the traders in 1986 under a 15-year installment scheme with monthly rents ranging between Rp 40,000 and Rp 50,000 per unit.

The residents, who had previously worked in Manggarai and Pluis in South Jakarta, said authorities had forced them to move to Pulogadung.

Their new houses had been heavily guarded by security forces in the beginning to make sure the businesspeople did not leave the area, they told the councilors.

"When we came here in the early 1980s, this area was tagged as a favorite place for genies to dump their kids," said another resident, Supardi, referring to how backward the place was.

"But after the area became a strategic business site, we're no longer allowed to own our houses," Supardi was quoted by Antara as saying.

The residents called on the councilors to look at the case closely and ascertain if the current policy should be revoked.

The councilors were also urged to look into the management practices of the Pulogadung management board for industrial environment and resettlement (BPLIP), which oversees the area.

BPLIP officials had been collecting money from the businesses to line their own pockets without concern for the residents, some of whom were no longer able to pay their monthly housing installments, community members said.

"The officials should have developed the community, so why are many of the residents still unable to pay their home installments?", one resident said.

BPLIP has a annual budget of more than Rp 1 billion to help develop the village's home industry businesses, said Ahmad Romli, another resident. "Why are many BPLIP officials acting as brokers selling city assets?" he asked.

Many of the village's residents brought banners to the meeting, some reading: "Probe the Pulogadung BPLIP officials to save the city's assets", "Security guard post sold for Rp 35 million, where's the money?" and "Football field rented, where did the money go?".

When asked to comment on the residents' accusations, BPLIP chairman Machmud said that the charges should first be clarified since he had only been at the post for 15 months.

The senior councilor heading the visit, Commission C chairman Amarullah Asbah, vowed to do his best to solve the problem. (bsr)