Land appropriation to be checked

Land appropriation to be checked

JAKARTA (JP): Deputy Governor Idroes said on Wednesday that he
will check reports of improper land appropriation by a developer
in Kebayoran Lama Selatan subdistrict, South Jakarta.

"I will ask the City Planning Office about the matter, and
take action against the developer if found guilty of violating
the regulation by appropriating the wrong locations," Idroes
said.

He reiterated that the city administration will not hesitate
in taking stern measures against any company failing to abide by
the laws.

PT AW, a private developer, was issued a permit to appropriate
and use 94,650 square meters of land in Kebayoran Lama Selatan
subdistrict, South Jakarta, for the construction of apartment and
shopping mall projects.

But the developer is reportedly appropriating about seven
hectares of land in Kebayoran Lama Utara subdistrict and has done
nothing at the proposed project site.

Ashari, a staff member of Kebayoran Lama Utara subdistrict
office, confirmed the appropriation of seven hectares of land,
consisting of two neighborhood communities in the subdistrict.

"The developer paid Rp 600,000 (US$272) per square meter to
appropriate the land," Ashari said.

Meanwhile, secretary of Kebayoran Lama Selatan subdistrict
Ishak Firdaus said that to date there has been no sign of when
the land for the proposed projects will be appropriated. "There
is no plan yet to build the apartments or shopping mall," he
said.

South Jakarta Mayor Pardjoko told reporters on Wednesday that
the details of the problem must first be looked into, whether
there is a typing error in the permit or if it is a case of
mistaken location on the developer's part.

"The mayoralty cannot do anything about the matter because the
permit was issued by city hall, while the residents whose lands
have been appropriated have not filed any complaints," he said.

He explained that based on the permit, the developer is
allowed to negotiate compensation with the residents and the
mayoralty can only interfere if there is a dispute or the
residents complain about the compensation.

"On the other hand, there is a trend in society in which they
happily accept the compensation because it is giving them
advantages. Why should the mayoralty interfere if all parties are
happy with the deal?" Pardjoko asked. (yns)