Officials warned over sale of 'wakaf' land

TANGERANG, West Java (JP): Those involved in the sale of a wakaf plot of land -- including the Kadu village chief, the subdistrict chief and an official from the regency's inspectorate office -- should be held responsible for their actions, the local administration's spokeswoman said yesterday.

"They should have known all along that the land, which was donated for religious or community purposes, can not be sold unless agreed to by all residents," Ena Karlina told The Jakarta Post.

Ena said the regent has instructed all concerned to review the sale of the land. She said complete reports on the sale of the land should be submitted soon to the regent.

"The regent has requested that all financial details regarding the sale of the land be included in the reports," Ena said.

Last month, a number of villagers filed complaints with the regent, saying that the land was sold by an influential figure with the approval of the village chief.

More than 80 villagers have signed a statement questioning the sale of the 32,250 square meter plot of land by Anjar Azizi. The land reportedly sold for Rp 100,000 per square meter.

The villagers claimed that the village head, Marta Dinata, gave Anjar permission to sell the land. They said Marta told Anjar that all the villagers had agreed to the sale.

"That's a blatant lie. In fact, we are strongly against the action," one of the villagers said.

Under Islamic law, no one has the right to sell wakaf land unless it is agreed upon by all concerned.

Another source said Anjar claimed that the money from the land's sale had been used to purchase another plot of land for all the villagers. The source added, however, that neither Anjar nor Marta had informed villagers of the exact location of the land, nor how much it was purchased for. (18/bas)