Military and police asked to be thrifty

Military and police asked to be thrifty

Moch N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Given their limited funding, both the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the National Police have been called on to adopt stringent budget policies that prioritize spending on national defense and public security.

Military observer Indria Samego and legislator Yasril Ananta Baharuddin of the Golkar Party stated on Sunday that the TNI and the National Police needed to efficiently identify the minimum funds necessary for improving their professionalism, and reduce non-strategic expenditure.

"We all know that the TNI and Police only receive a limited amount of state funds. But this is no reason for them to back up either legal or illegal businesses," Indria, of the National Institute of Sciences (LIPI), told the Jakarta Post.

He called on businesspeople to also stop their habit of requesting military and police officers to support their businesses.

"Where the TNI and Police are allowed to run businesses, they have to establish companies in accordance with market rules and be barred from receiving special privileges," he said.

Indria and Yasril were commenting on President Megawati Soekarnoputri's statement on Saturday that both the TNI and the National Police should improve their professionalism without resorting to raising their own funds to finance operations, despite the minimal budget provided by the government.

Megawati asserted that the state was obliged to cover funding requirements for both the TNI and National Police. Thus, she said, the TNI and the National Police had to stop raising their own funds to finance their routine operations.

In his response, TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto expressed skepticism that given its minimal budget the military could develop as a professional and prestigious force.

The military and police have been running various businesses for more than five decades in order to cover their funding requirements in the light of the pressures on the state budget.

They established foundations, with some officers named directors or commissioners, while others reportedly backed illegal businesses such as drugs, gambling, prostitution, poaching and logging.

In many cases, the involvement of the military and police in business has brought about rivalry. In illegal businesses, these rivalries have led to clashes, killing soldiers and civilians, such as during the recent clashes in Namo Sira-sira, near Binjai, North Sumatra.

Yasril of the House of Representatives 's Commission I on political and security affairs said the TNI and the National Police must prioritize expenditure on vehicle and equipment maintenance, and improving their skills.

"At this moment, do not demand any sharp budget increases. We're all in a difficult situation, so it is also a must for the TNI and the National Police to be thrifty and allocate their funds for essential matters," he said.

Indria went on to say that the government had to be committed to increasing the TNI and National Police budgets over the coming years, and eliminating non-essential posts and corruption.

He cited non-essential funding for political officials, which reached Rp 1 billion (US$112,000) per person and should be reduced.

Meanwhile, Yasril said the House would still tolerate the TNI and police carrying on legal businesses through their foundations, subject to strict requirements, until the government could fully finance their needs.

But, there should be supervision from the House as well as internal supervision to avoid any irregularities, he said.

"In the past, there were many cases where the foundations were misused by senior officers to engage in their own personal business affairs. The profits didn't go to the foundation, and thus the welfare of military and police personnel did not increase," he said.

The foundations also needed to be transparent and be properly audited by public accountants, according to Yasril.

"All these activities can continue until the government is able to fully finance the TNI and the National Police. They must close the foundations once the government can fulfill its obligations," he added.