Officials' salaries to be halved

BEKASI: Each new Bekasi councillor will receive only Rp 6 million (US$652) in monthly salary, half of the Rp 12 million that councillors in the previous tenure received.

"Government Regulation No. 110/2000 stipulates that each councillor will be paid a salary of Rp 6 million per month," Bekasi Mayor Akhmad Zurfaih said on Thursday.

The regulation, however, was opposed by councillor Wahyu Pirhantono from the Prosperous Justice Party, who was reelected for the 2004 to 2009 term.

He argued that the regulation had been revoked by the Supreme Court following the issuance of Bylaw No. 5/2003, which refers to Law No. 22/2000 on regional autonomy.

"How can the municipality administration allocate councillors a monthly salary of Rp 6 million based on a regulation that has already been revoked by the Supreme Court, although Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno has yet to annul it?" he asked.

He insisted that each councillor be paid Rp 12 million in monthly salary. -- Antara