Irregularities admitted in statue project

Irregularities admitted in statue project

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

While Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso was away at the Indonesia
Provincial Administrations Association (APPSI) meeting in Banda
Aceh, Jakarta Parks Agency head Mauritz Napitupulu admitted
procedural irregularities by the city administration in the
construction of Gen. Soedirman statue.

Mauritz told a press conference at the City Hall on Wednesday
that his agency had appointed PT Patria Mega Komunika as the
contractor without a tender process after Sutiyoso approved the
proposal submitted by a company led by Nurhadi, a grandson of
Soedirman.

"The governor had agreed that the project was to be
implemented by relatives of Gen. Soedirman. Therefore, PT Patria
Mega Komunika was directly named for the project," he said.

The presidential decree No. 17/2000 on the procurement for
government projects states that all projects must be announced
publicly and go through a tender process.

A direct appointment can only be implemented if the project is
worth less than Rp 50 million (US$5,882) or must be implemented
in an emergency situation.

The Soedirman statue, located on the median strip of Jl. Jend.
Sudirman in the Dukuh Atas area of Central Jakarta, did not meet
those conditions.

Mauritz also said that the Jakarta administration had changed
the size of the two billboards that were leased to the contractor
as part of the compensation package, from eight meters by 16
meters to 10 meters by 20 meters.

The billboards, which Patria Mega Komunika leased for Rp 10
billion (Rp 6.5 billion in cash and Rp 3.5 billion for the statue
construction), were how the city apparently paid for the
Soedirman project. There are 163 city-owned billboards across the
city and the size and locations have been decided in a
gubernatorial decree.

Mauritz admitted that Sutiyoso did not issue a new decree to
change the size of the billboards.

"The governor agreed to change the size of the boards after he
consulted officials from the City Spatial Agency and other
officials," he said.

Nurhadi told the press that his company had proposed the
larger billboards due to "market demand". He said that his
clients would only be interested in the advertising space if the
they were 10 meters by 20 meters.

The two billboards are located on the right and left hand
sides of the main thoroughfare, near the statue.

Mauritz also strongly denied the mark up allegation as
reported by Jakarta Development Watch (Jadewa) to police on
Tuesday.

He said he had his suspicions that the allegation against him
was made because "certain parties" were upset over rejected
proposals.

"When I am summoned by the police, I will explain the project
transparently," he said.

Mauritz said that he would not make any legal effort to
counter Jadewa, which reported him to the police.

Jadewa's executive director Santoso AS had said that based on
his NGO's estimation, the Soedirman statue should only have been
valued at around Rp 1.79 billion, much lower than the estimated
Rp 3.5 billion.

The statue, which was inaugurated by Sutiyoso on Aug. 16, was
designed by Sunaryo, a sculptor from the Bandung Institute of
Technology.

The 4.5-ton statue standing on a 4.5-meter-high pedestal, was
constructed at the request of his descendants. Soedirman was born
in 1912 in Bodas Karang Jati village, Rembang regency, Central
Java. He was a commander during the fight for independence, and
was appointed chief of the Indonesian Military on Nov. 12, 1945.