Minister shocked by shabby sports offices
JAKARTA (JP): State Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs Agung Laksono made his maiden visit to the office complex housing the nation's sports associations in Senayan on Friday, but his first hand view of national sports development ended in disappointment.
"I'm sorry about the poor condition of these offices. I feel like I'm in a pasar senggol (congested market) or Tanah Abang market," he said after his first visit to the complex since taking up his Cabinet post in March.
Tanah Abang is a market in Central Jakarta which has long been a headache for the city authorities as a result of traffic congestion caused by traders spilling onto the surrounding roads.
Agung shook his head in disbelief when he saw employees of the nation's sporting associations working on plans to improve the country's performance in the international arena from such modest, if not messy, quarters.
The complex, better known as the Kanselerij, houses 21 of the 50 sports bodies which fall under the auspices of the National Sports Council.
The complex is situated in the Senayan stadium compound.
Most of the associations have been allocated about 20 square meters of floor space, although a few, including the boxing, cycling, wrestling and archery associations, occupy larger offices.
The plywood ceilings leak, the floor is uneven and covered with dust, and the corridor giving access to the offices is dark and stuffy. Buckets have been placed at intervals along the corridor to catch water dripping out of leaking air conditioners. Spiders' webs adorn the wooden walls.
Collapse
Many of the offices appear to be on the point of collapse.
"The conditions here are not comfortable for staff and sports executives. If their minds are not fresh while they are working, how can they improve the performance of our athletes," Agung said.
However, he praised the sports officials for their willingness to work under these conditions.
It was obvious that an effort had been made to clean some parts of the complex before Agung's visit.
National Sports Council deputy chairman Arie Sudewo, who escorted Agung around the complex, said 10 of the 21 sports organizations accommodated there had plans relocate to the Senayan management board's office outside the stadium.
"Hopefully, those sports officials will then be able to work better so that our athletes manage to win not only Southeast Asian (SEA) Games medals, but medals at the Asian Games and the Olympics too," he said.
Fajar, who works for the Indonesia Boxing Association, said that relocation plans had been afoot for over two years.
"But so far, the plans have remained just that. The dirty bathroom and the dark building have made top sports executives reluctant to drop by here," he said.
Aji Kusmantri, the national judo association's secretary- general, complained that a computer was destroyed when the roof of his office sprung a leak last year.
"It's difficult to repair a leaking concrete roof. So we have decided to move to the second floor of the Senayan management board's building, although we have to pay rent there," he said.
Agung said that when the sports council's new building has been finished, all sports associations will be accommodated under one roof.
The council's old office on Jl. Sudirman was demolished in early 1996. On the site a 50-story skyscraper called Menara Senayan (Senayan Tower) will be built. Some of the stories will be reserved for sports organizations. (yan)