Lampung NGOs threaten to urge mass protest against state budget
Oyos Saroso HN, The Jakarta Post, Bandar Lampung
An alliance of 36 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) has threatened to call for a mass protest against the 2002 Lampung budget, which they say only benefits the local elite.
According to the NGOs, they will urge locals to stop paying taxes and other obligatory fees to the government and request that the central government postpone disbursement of the budget until changes are made to it.
"The people should not pay their taxes to the government should a bigger part of the budget be allocated to improve officials' welfare while the majority of people, especially those worst hit by natural disasters, are left in poor circumstances," Idhan Januwardana, spokesman for the NGOs' alliance, said at a media conference here on Monday.
He said the NGOs' coordinators would travel to Jakarta to meet President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno to request that the government postpone disbursement of the budget.
The NGOs grouped in the Public Network Caring for Transparency and Regional Autonomy (JMPTOD), includes the Lampung Parliament Watch (LPW), Lampung Anti-Corruption Committee Center for Development Studies (Pusiban) and Center for Studies of Development Policy (Puskab).
Of the Rp 486,307 billion 2002 budget that was endorsed by the Lampung legislative council last Saturday, 66.45 percent or Rp 311.182 billion has been allocated for routine spending and only 33.55 percent, or Rp 157.125 billion is earmarked for development projects.
Despite minor changes to the budget, the increase by 13.5 percent in the budget from the 2001 budget totaling Rp 412.5 billion is aimed not at helping solve numerous problems the people face, but reportedly at improving the welfare of the local elite.
Cladius Dalu Maran, spokesman for the legislature's budget commission, said on Saturday that his commission had cut Rp 9 billion from routine spending and allocated it to development projects.
"A part of the funds will be used to help hundreds of families affected by flooding in East and South Lampung regencies," he said.
Idhan said both the provincial government and the legislature had no sense of crisis and solidarity with the people because no significant changes had been made to the budget, which students and experts in the province have also sharply criticized.
Armen Yasir, cofounder of LPW, said the NGOs would file a class-action suit against the provincial administration and the legislature for violating Government Regulation No. 110/2000 on the appointment of local officials, their allowances and facilities, requiring both the executive and legislative bodies to make adjustments that reflect the reality.
"In this case, both the provincial administration and legislature are in violation of both the government regulation and the 1999 law on regional autonomy over which the people are allowed to file a class action," he said.
The NGOs, students and observers have criticized the budget for increasing legislators' gross salary to Rp 22.1 million per month this fiscal year from the previous Rp 4 million and increases in the governor's monthly salary, allowances and other benefits.
Armen said the 2002 budget indicated collusion between the executive and the legislative council, which should be investigated.
Ari Darmastuti, coordinator of the Center for Studies of Development Policy (Puskab), said that despite being endorsed, the central government could delay disbursement of the budget because it was in contrary to the law.
She said the high pay of the governor, deputy governor and members of the legislative council were not a guarantee that corrupt and collusive practices would be eradicated in the province.
She regretted that the local elite in the administration and legislative council had failed to pay attention to poverty, malnutrition, unemployment and education.