Illegal fees at vehicle testing station denied

JAKARTA (JP): A senior city official has denied allegations that city vehicle roadworthiness test station employees have been involved in the collection of illegal levies.

The head of the City Land Transportation Agency, J.P. Sepang, said on Friday drivers might have paid scalpers loitering around the station to help them find a shortcut to get the service.

Sometimes some of the drivers function as scalpers themselves, he said without elaborating.

Sepang made the remarks after a city councilor reported earlier that the collection of illegal levies at a testing station in Srengseng Sawah, South Jakarta, was rampant, resulting in a sharp rise in the test's cost by as much as 500 percent.

Asrul Harun of Commission C for financial affairs said on Thursday that the cost for a test had jumped to an average of Rp 105,000 from a city set price of only Rp 20,000.

"There is a possibility that some of the drivers themselves have also acted as scalpers. Many (hired drivers) abuse the trust of their employees by frequently leaving their vehicle at the station while waiting for the test to be performed," Sepang said.

He, however, said that he would take full responsibility if the allegations were proven to be true. "I will take the responsibility and remove those involved," he said.

Governor Sutiyoso reiterated on Friday that he would not hesitate to take stern action against any official found to be involved in illegal practices.

He also called on people to not cooperate with scalpers and corrupt officials.

"Please don't ever give bribes. Just report it to the authorities if you feel that an employee has acted against the reform spirit," said Sutiyoso after attending a ceremony where he was promoted to a three-star general.

Asrul claimed the illegal levies included Rp 24,000 for an application form, Rp 6,000 for a car wash, Rp 5,000 for an emissions test, Rp 5,000 for a speedometer test, Rp 5,000 for a brake test, Rp 5,000 for a chassis test and Rp 5,000 for a headlight test.

Other additional fees included Rp 20,000 for a test result book, Rp 15,000 for a medicine box, Rp 1,000 for parking and Rp 5,000 for the installation of a license plate, he said.

"People usually don't receive any receipts for these services," he said.

Asrul urged the city administration to be more serious in addressing reports of illegal levies.

"If the city administration doesn't take any measures on such illegal practices, it will suffer great financial losses."

Sepang, however, insisted that such additional fees, including for the test result book, medicine box and a car wash, had been abolished.

Jakarta currently has two vehicle testing stations under the agency's supervision: the Srengseng Sawah station located on Jl. Mohamad Kahfi II and another station in Ujung Menteng subdistrict in East Jakarta.

The Srengseng Sawah station was set up on 2.5-hectare plot of land in 1995 and is jointly managed by the city administration and private company PT Suara Adhika Wahana Ujindo (SAWU). It serves customers in Central and South Jakarta.

PT SAWU receives Rp 15,000 for each vehicle test, while the city takes in Rp 2,000.

Suharyanto, the station's manager, admitted that there were 40 scalpers operating in the station.

"I've taken several measures to eliminate these practices, but I'm still facing difficulties," he said without elaborating.

He said the station currently tested an average of 150 vehicles per day, a drop from 300 before the crisis.

Suharyanto said the legal levies submitted to the city administration in August totaled Rp 85 million, a drop from Rp 100 million in the corresponding period last year. (ivy)