Military, police to anticipate bus strike

Military, police to anticipate bus strike

JAKARTA: Governor Sutiyoso has asked the military and the
police to ready their buses for transporting passengers, in case
bus operators act on their threat to go on strike next week.

Organda, the Organization of Land Transportation Owners, has
threatened to stop their public bus services early next week if
its proposal to increase bus fares is not approved by the city
administration.

Previously, Organda had proposed a fare hike of 50 percent,
then revised it to 35 percent. However, the administration would
only approve a hike of 27 percent.

"I hope the City Council can act as a mediator to settle our
differences regarding the fare hike," Sutiyoso told reporters
after a meeting with city officials and Organda on Friday.

According to the governor, the city's 27 percent fare hike
plan could be revised upward, but he did not elaborate.

Meanwhile, city police chief Ins. Gen. Makbul Padmanegara
confirmed that the governor had asked the military and the police
to provide their own buses for commuters, in case Organda went on
strike.

"But I think they should resolve their differences without
harming public interests," he told the press after the meeting.
-- JP

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Focus-Dekel-graft
Two Dekel members detained for graft
JP/8/GREATER

Two Dekel members detained for graft

JAKARTA: Two members of the subdistrict council (Dekel) in
Serdang, Kemayoran district, are now under police detention for
allegedly misusing Rp 700 million of a community empowerment fund
(PPMK), Central Jakarta Mayor Petra Lumbun said on Friday.

Lumbun said a member of Paseban subdistrict council was also
suspected of appropriating Rp 60 million.

Twenty-five out of 167 subdistricts in the city received a
fund of Rp 2 billion for community empowerment projects in 2001.
In 2002, all subdistricts, except the 25 subdistricts, received
the fund, with each obtaining Rp 250 million in aid per year.

In 2003, the fund allocation was increased to Rp 500 million
per subdistrict, despite widespread reports about the misuse of
the money by subdistrict representatives.--JP

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Focus-Tangerang-land-facilities
Public facilities transfer delayed
JP/8/GREATER

Public facilities transfer delayed

TANGERANG: Many developers, especially those that have built
low-cost housing complexes in Tangerang regency, have not
transferred land that is to be provided for public facilities to
the regency administration.

So far, the administration has not taken any action to push
housing developers to submit 30 percent of their total land as
required by a regulation for building public facilities.

In many cases, the administration has refused to accept the
land from other developers, saying that the cost of maintaining
the property would be a burden for them.

In one example, the administration refused to accept a park
and street lights in the Bumi Serpong Damai (BSD) housing estate
despite an offer from developer PT BSD.

"We cannot afford the maintenance cost (of the public
facilities) as we don't have any money," Nanang Komara, the chief
of the regency building management and zoning agency, said on
Wednesday.

He added that the administration would only accept the land
from housing developers if residents demanded that the
administration provide public facilities, such as schools, places
of worship, public cemeteries or sport centers.--JP