'No compromise for tax evaders'

'No compromise for tax evaders'

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Vice Governor Fauzi Bowo said on Thursday the city would not
compromise with 774 tax evaders whose cumulative tax arrears
since 1987 total about Rp 58.5 billion.

Fauzi said it the administration would no longer tolerate
those parties who failed to pay their taxes.

He added that tax problems should be resolved through existing
regulations.

"What compromise? The regulations are very clear. We will
resolve the problems based on existing regulations," Fauzi said
after a seminar on the revision of Law No. 34/1999 on the special
administration of Jakarta as the capital.

The head of the City Revenue Agency, Deden Supriadi, announced
last week the names of tax evaders from four business sectors:
hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues and advertising
companies.

Deden said that on July 1, his office would issue a letter to
demanding these companies pay their tax arrears. The companies
will be given until the middle of next month to pay the taxes or
risk having their assets seized.

The city administration is taking action based on Law No.
19/1997 and the revised Law No. 19/2000 on the forceful
collection of taxes.

The law also authorizes the administration to put the seized
assets up for auction if the tax arrears are not paid.

Sahid Jaya Hotel, one of the companies named by the city
administration last week, is seeking a "peaceful" solution to its
tax problems.

The hotel's president director, Hariyadi B. Sukamdani, told
the press that the hotel and the administration had different
calculations on how much in back taxes were owed by the hotel.

According to the hotel, it owes Rp 928 million, but the City
Revenue Agency puts that figure at about Rp 13.26 billion.

Fauzi said tax arrears were an old problem. "It's time for the
city administration to crack down on tax evaders."

Hotel Sahid spokeswoman Sri Ayuningsih said on Thursday that
the hotel had invited city officials to discuss how to resolve
the problem peacefully.

"We have invited city administration officials to discuss the
matter in order to seek a win-win solution, but so far they have
refused to discuss any different calculation," Sri told The
Jakarta Post. She added that the hotel management would not
insist on its own calculation.