Plan for new company opposed

JAKARTA (JP): A City Council commission rejected yesterday the municipality's plan to set up a new city-owned company to distribute staple foods to cooperatives.

Djafar Badjeber, head of Commission B for economic affairs, said the plan was rejected as the establishment of the new company, to be called PT Waserda Jaya, would not guarantee the smooth distribution of foodstuffs.

"Its establishment will waste both funds and time, especially during the current crisis."

He said the city administration needed to utilize the two existing city-owned companies -- PD Dharma Jaya for meat butchery and distribution and PT Food Station for rice and soybean distribution.

The plan to set up Waserda Jaya was advanced Tuesday by Deputy Governor for Economic Affairs Harun Al Rasyid at a City Council plenary session on the city draft budget for the 1998/1999 fiscal year.

Harun said the establishment of the new company was expected to enable cooperatives to compete with other retailers.

"The cooperatives' will meet their goals because distribution chains for the shops will be entirely controlled by the planned company."

"Rather than using the funds to establish the new company, I think they can be used to finance other activities to improve the situation," Djafar said.

He also opposes the establishment of the new food distribution company because the city administration, in cooperation with Goro Batara Sakti wholesale company, plans to establish a similar firm.

He questioned how the administration could manage Waserda Jaya when Warung Goro cooperatives were set up jointly with Goro Batara Sakti.

The administration agreed last month to establish 65 Warung Goro cooperatives throughout the city in cooperation with the wholesale company. (ind)