'Kepri province still long way off'

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Minister for Home Affairs Hari Sabarno said Wednesday that the establishment of Riau Islands province, known as Kepri, was still a long way off as the plan had to be approved by the governor of Riau province and its councillors.

"Theoretically, the Riau Islands could become a separate province but it might be difficult to bring this about due to the administrative requirements," Hari Sabarno was quoted by Antara as saying in Pekanbaru, Riau on Wednesday.

People from Riau islands, consisting of Kepri Regency, Natuna Regency, Karimun Regency, Batam, and Tanjungpinang town, have been clamoring for a separated province, citing Pekanbaru's neglect of their development needs.

The move, however, has met strong objection from the Riau governor and provincial councillors.

The House of Representatives (DPR) is currently deliberating a bill on the establishment of the Riau Islands province.

Hari said that for the Riau Islands to become a province, endorsements from regents and mayors as well as councillors from the five regencies/municipalities should be forthcoming.

"Each regency or municipality may express their own opinions on the establishment of the Riau Islands province," he said.

After securing endorsement from regents and mayors, the plan should also be endorsed by the governor and provincial councillors.

According to Hari, the five regencies/municipalities still did not agree on the future provincial capital of the Riau Islands province should be Batam or Tanjungpinang.

Meanwhile, proponents of the Riau Islands province expressed optimism on Wednesday that the government would approve the plan as the region was ready to become a separate province from Riau.

"The central government promised to grant our demand for a separate province on Sept. 24 when the House plenary meeting endorsed the bill on the establishment of the Riau Islands province," chairman of the Riau Islands Association Daud Kadir said in Pekanbaru, Riau on Wednesday.

Hari Sabarno, however, said he was not aware that the House of Representatives (DPR) had approved a bill on the establishment of the Riau Islands province.

"I don't know who decided on that date," he said.

Daud admitted that the Riau governor and councillors had not issued a recommendation on the issue but stressed that the most important thing now was to endorse the bill.

"Endorse the bill first, we don't mind if its implementation is postponed for two or three years," said Daud, stressing that the House could exercise its initiative rights to propose a bill.

Senior advisor to the Riau Islands Province Working Committee, Dun Usul, said the House had promised to endorse the bill on Sept. 24.

Should there still be unresolved issues as of that date, the people of Riau Islands are ready to hold a referendum to determine whether or not the Riau Islands can form a separate province.

He said referendum would be an effective tool for determining whether or not the demand for the establishment of the Riau Islands province was the genuine wish of the Riau Islands people.

The political elite in Pekanbaru, he said, had always labeled the demands for an independent province as political maneuvers by a small group of power-hungry politicians in the islands.

He also denied allegations that his group had bribed provincial councillors to support its cause.

"It is not true that we bribed Riau provincial councillors to support the proposal to set up the Riau Islands province," he said.

Following strong demands for the establishment of the Riau Islands province, Riau councillors set up a special team to discuss the proposal.

The team endorsed the move, but the decision was vetoed by a councillors' plenary meeting.