Police plan new system for vehicle documents

JAKARTA (JP): Police said yesterday that to reduce the concentration of services at City Police headquarters, the system of managing vehicle ownership documents (STNK) and driving licenses (SIM) will be decentralized.

Deputy chief of the Jakarta City Police Brig. Gen. Hamami Nata told members of the House of Representatives of Commission I which oversees foreign affairs, defense and information that the plan was to go into effect "soon".

As many as 26 House members led by Abu Hasan Sazili, the commission's vice-chairman of the Golkar faction, visited the City Police headquarters to observe the procedures of issuing vehicle ownership documents and driving licenses.

The STNK services for East and North Jakarta will be managed by the Kebon Nanas police office, East Jakarta, and at the police office at Jl. Daan Mogot for West and South Jakarta. The Central Jakarta STNK services will still be managed at the City Police headquarters, Hamami said.

"SIM decentralization, however, is still in the planning stage since an adequate site for the handling of the procedures still has to be found. The current police district offices are considered inadequate because, for SIM procedures, space for driving tests and examinations must be provided," Hamami said.

Hamami reported that 190,076 new STNK documents were issued by the city police from September 1993 to 1994. During the same period over 1.1 million expired ones were extended.

The number of STNKs issued increased in the following year. In 1994 to 1995 (up to end August) 242,048 new STNKs were issued and 143,329 old ones extended. Up to the end of August this year 1.18 million STNK documents were extended under a new system of "legitimation" which only requires that old documents be stamped every year for extension. The legitimation system started in September last year.

"The city police handed over Rp 249.5 billion (US$11.34 million) to National Police headquarters and the City Administration from 1993 to 1994, just from the STNK service payments from the public," Hamami said.

According to Hamami, the Jakarta governor had agreed to the decentralization system and was planning to build an eight floor building on Jl. Daan Mogot, West Jakarta, to handle the West Jakarta and South Jakarta services.

According to the vice-chairman of the City Revenue Office, Sueb Nuhung, the building which is at present being constructed will be used for both the STNK services and the West Jakarta Revenue Office.

"The building will be completed in 1998 but will start to be used next year when four floors are finished," Sueb said.

Police data show that the number of new driving licenses issued by the City Police reached 455,173 in 1992; 498,998 in 1993; 487,265 in 1994, and 219,539 up to August this year.

Commenting on the decentralization plan, House member BN Marbun, the commission's vice chairman from the Indonesian Democratic Party faction, said the need for such a system was very urgent considering the rapid growth of Jakarta's population.

"The plan is very logical given the population of Jakarta and surrounding areas, which has reached 10 million," he said.

"The decentralization system is also efficient. People do not need to come from all over Jakarta to the City Police headquarters to have their driving licenses or vehicle ownership documents processed," Marbun said. (01)