MPR leaders spurn Volvos, royal suites
MPR leaders spurn Volvos, royal suites
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Apparently wishing to prove their commitment to leading modest
lifestyles, all four leaders of the People's Consultative
Assembly (MPR) said on Wednesday that they would refuse the Volvo
cars to which they were entitled.
They also said that they would eschew staying in royal suites
in the Mulia Hotel during the Assembly's plenary session
scheduled for Oct. 19 and Oct. 20, saying they wanted standard
rooms instead.
"The message is clear, we want to reduce state expenditure. We
hope the example we are setting will be followed by other state
officials," Assembly Speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid of the Prosperous
Justice Party (PKS) told the press here.
He said he had told the Assembly secretariat to convey the
message to the State Secretariat, the institution that finances
the purchase of official cars for state officials.
Hidayat was accompanied by his three deputies, AM Fatwa of the
National Mandate Party (PAN), and Mooryati Soedibyo and M. Aksa
Mahmud of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD).
By tradition, senior state officials, including the House
speaker and deputy speakers, Assembly speaker and deputy
speakers, and Cabinet ministers are given Volvo cars as their
official vehicles. The speaker of the newly-established DPD was
also in line for a Volvo.
Volvo cars cost between Rp 378.5 million and Rp 950 million
each, depending on the type.
Fatwa, who is the House deputy speaker for the 1999-2004
period, was Wednesday using a Volvo S-90 series car. He promised,
however, that he would soon return the official car to its
garage.
Hidayat said the cost-saving moves were necessary to reduce
the burden on the state budget. Although the Assembly leaders
said they would be willing to accept other, cheaper cars, they
did not say what their preferred cars were.
"The most important thing is that the official cars do not
give the impression that the Assembly leaders are living in
luxury," he said.
He said the move would also counter speculation that the
plenary session to elect Assembly leaders from Oct. 1 through
Oct. 6 had to be extended due to rivalry among the candidates --
all anxious to get their hands on state facilities.
Aksa Mahmud, meanwhile, acknowledged that the royal suites
were equipped with saunas. "It's excessive. All we need are rooms
for sleeping and discussions. We only need standard rooms that
cost Rp 400,000," he said.
The Hotel Mulia charges US$370, or around Rp 3.33 million per
night, for its royal suites.
"We will be staying at the hotel for work, not for leisure and
saunas. We have to end all this luxury," said Mooryati, the owner
of cosmetics producer PT Mustika Ratu.
Commenting on public suspicions that the move was a political
one designed to ensure his reelection in the 2009 election,
Hidayat said that he was only fulfilling the aspirations of the
people, who want their leaders to have a sense of crisis.
"I've never thought about campaigning (for 2009). My concern
is that the people need serious and committed leaders," Hidayat
added.
Aksa and Fatwa said that they hoped their moves would be
followed by other state institutions, including state
enterprises.