Irregularities still

Irregularities still

rife at Priok as new

payment system starts

JAKARTA (JP): Irregularities, including illegal levies, still
occur at the container terminal of the Tanjung Priok port despite
the introduction of voucher payments for handling services early
this month.

However, an official at the port told The Jakarta Post
yesterday that the number of irregularities has declined.

Under an agreement concluded by importers and shipping
associations at the port, fees for handling services at the
container terminal should be paid with vouchers issued by Bank
Bukopin.

Such a payment system is designed to eliminate illegal levies
by officials at the terminal, to eradicate the operation of
brokers for container transportation and to help the procure new
trailers that meet the government's regulations regarding the
roadworthiness of shipping vehicles.

An official of the state-owned Tanjung Priok port management
company, PT Pelabuhan II, said the Organization of Land
Transportation Owners (Organda), one of the parties involved in
the agreement, should improve the implementation of voucher-
payment system to help smoothen the handling of containers at the
port.

She acknowledged that some truckers continue paying container
handling services with cash, instead of vouchers.

Chairman of the Indonesian Importer Association (GINSI)
Amirudin Saud said in a press conference yesterday the new system
of payment is helpful for both importers and operators of
trailers. This is because it cuts down on port related corruption
and it allows truck owners to pay-off vehicle loans directly to
the bank.

Brokers

"But the new system will affect the operation of brokers, some
of whom are still doing business at the container terminal," he
said.

He noted that brokers had played an unfavorable role in
Tanjung Priok for decades. "They could supply trucks for those in
need. However, they charge too much and sometimes hold the
payment for some months before they give it to owners of the
trailers," he said.

Amirudin said Bukopin has agreed to provide credits for
trucking companies to rejuvenate their fleets with new trailers
that meet government regulations.

According to Decree No.KM-74/1990 of the Minister of
Transportation, trailers must have two and three axles for
carrying containers of 20 and 40 feet respectively. The decree
has gone unheeded because many trucking companies cannot afford
to purchase new trucks with such capacities.

The Directorate of Land Transport has recently stated that it
would take firm measures against truckers using old trucks to
transport containers as of July 4.

According to Amirudin, Bukopin has thus far helped companies
to procure around 800 out of the 2,000 trucks currently operating
in Tanjung Priok.

The chief of the container terminal, Abdullah Syaifuddin, told
the Post yesterday that the terminal handles some 800 twenty-feet
equivalent (TEU) units each day.

A total of 978,305 TEU units were handled at the terminal last
year. (icn)