Police need more financial aid: Experts

Police need more financial aid: Experts

JAKARTA (JP): Observing that police operations are expensive,
a senior police officer and a legal observer conceded on Friday
that the police often rely on "nonbudgetary" financing to carry
out their duties.

Interviewed separately by The Jakarta Post, spokesman of the
National Police Headquarters Brig. Gen. Dadang Garnida and legal
observer Satjipto Rahardjo said the funds provided by the
government were inadequate compared to their operational
expenditures.

"The highest operational budget allocated to the police for a
crime investigation is only Rp 200,000 (US$23)," Satjipto, who is
a law professor at the Semarang-based Diponegoro University,
said.

He said the government-sponsored funding was inadequate to
cover the police's expenditures, citing, among other things, the
skyrocketing fees for transportation.

"We cannot imagine that, for example, a police officer in
Jakarta will able to chase a criminal to Surabaya, the capital of
East Java, because of the very limited budget," he said.

Satjipto claimed that operational funds allotted to the
national police were the lowest compared to other Asian
countries.

"Based on a report by Asiaweek magazine, the ratio between the
allocated operational funds and the number of policeman is
inappropriate. That's why the police cannot give a thorough
service to the community," he said, adding that a budgetary
increase should be considered "a price for safety".

Dadang said the government was asked to raise the operational
budget to assist the police in solving its cases.

"The Jakarta Police contributes some Rp 6 billion ($705,882)
per day in driver's license fees, vehicle taxes and other
revenues to the city administration. But the administration only
gives the city police some Rp 900 million per year for its
activities," he said.

Both Satjipto and Dadang admitted that the limited funds had
caused police personnel to seek "other sources" to settle the
budget problem.

"Some police officers may seek honest ways to cover the
minimum budget. But others may pursue their own interests," said
Satjipto.

It is not a secret that the police often seek various ways to
deal with the problem, such as by selling illegal drugs which are
seized during the police operations, or by providing protection
for gambling dens.

Another move is to ask for money from crime victims in return
for the police's readiness to track down their stolen valuables.

"Anyone reporting their missing goat to the police will
eventually have to loose their cow," Satjipto said, using an
analogy.

Meanwhile, Dadang praised the people who helped the police
with their operational spendings.

"We thank the people who sometimes assist the police by
providing funds for the police's operations," he said without
elaborating.

"Indeed, the security in the capital is not only the
responsibility of the city police, but also all Jakarta
residents."

Jakarta Police chief Maj. Gen. Nurfaizi urged the city
administration on Tuesday to increase the allocated budget for
the city police since the annual budget was too small to finance
the police's operations and activities.

The two-star general refused to mention how much the budget
the city police should get, but he said the current budget was
inadequate to finance the police's operations here.

The city police comprises 18,000 personnel.

Earlier on Wednesday, Governor Sutiyoso rejected Nurfaizi's
request for additional funding, saying the city administration
was not responsible for increasing the budget.

"The administration is only a contributor; the responsibility
for financing the city police's operations is in the hands of the
National Police Headquarters," he said. (asa)