Jakarta's Gapensi wants jobs on Manggarai project

Jakarta's Gapensi wants jobs on Manggarai project

JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Builders'
Association (Gapensi) wants to be involved in the planned
Manggarai Integrated Terminal project.

Daniel Hutapea, the chapter's head, said yesterday his office
had sent a letter to the consortium's leader, PT Citra Marga
Nusapala Persadha, asking them to involve Gapensi members in the
project.

The government plans to build an integrated transport terminal
in Manggarai, South Jakarta. The 124-hectare terminal will be
surrounded by a commercial center and apartment buildings. The
existing bus terminal will be transformed into a four-story
station with 22 train tracks, four underground express trains,
intercity and city buses, minibuses and taxis. The project is
expected to cost at least US$285 million. No one is sure when the
project will start.

Daniel said, at a meeting between the association and the
City's Public Works Agency yesterday, that builders and
contractors should learn to cooperate before free trade begins in
2003.

Deputy Governor for Administrative Affairs Idroes and the head
of the City's Public Works Agency Suharto attended the meeting
with at least 200 Gapensi members, Antara reported.

"Cooperation between contractors and builders will improve the
quality of their skills," he said.

Daniel said tenders for big projects should be publicly
announced, in accordance with Article 121 of a Presidential
Decree which says biddings for state projects must be announced
through the mass media.

"Information on the projects must include the nature of the
works, the cost, when the bidding opens and when the project will
start," he said.

"There are times when tender committees publicly announce
small projects, but hide information on bigger projects because
they plan to award the projects to certain bidders."

Daniel criticized the tender process for projects of the
City's Land Transportation Agency and Electricity Company.

"Their announcements do not give detailed information about
the projects," he said.

Separately, the head of the City's Public Works Agency,
Suharto, said that the city's 2,300 construction firms could
cooperate through mergers or joint ventures.

"They should not expect to work on state projects only. The
cost of the City Administration's projects is only about five
percent of the total investment in development projects. The
contractors must compete for privately-owned projects," he said.
He did not give a total investment figure. (sur)