Mayor urged to get tough against illegal builders

Mayor urged to get tough against illegal builders

JAKARTA (JP): A City Council member has urged South Jakarta
Mayor Pardjoko to take consistently harsh measures against
residents constructing business structures on land earmarked for
residential sites.

Saud Rahman, a councilor of Commission D in charge of
development affairs, said over the weekend the mayor must stop
the residents from continuing their business activities on Jl.
Kemang Raya, Jl. Bangka and Jl. Ampera.

Saud said the land on which their business buildings stand are
allocated under law as "yellow area" residential districts.

Many of those areas have been turned into business districts,
with pubs, restaurants, discotheques, shopping centers and
apartments constructed there.

In a discussion with owners of the buildings recently, the
council found that the businessmen had secured official permits
for the establishment of their property, Saud said.

South Jakarta Mayor Pardjoko has said many times that the
South Jakarta mayoralty is consistent on maintaining the areas as
residential sites. The mayoralty is collecting data on the
violations, including the issuance of the permits, he said.

Governor Surjadi Soedirdja ordered all city officials recently
to be consistent in the implementation of all regulations.

"All regulations made through a democratic process, must be
implemented authoritatively," the governor told his officials,
including all mayors, as well as all heads of municipal offices.

He told the newly-installed head of the City Development
Supervision Office, Hartanto, to improve the development control
system.

He said that many buildings have been set up without building
permits because the procedures for the processing of building
permits and other related licenses are complicated and time-
consuming.

"Improve the service to the public in order to maintain the
best possible image of the city," he said. (32)