Poor discipline upsets deputy governor

JAKARTA (JP): Deputy Governor of Welfare Affairs Djailani has expressed concern over shortcomings in the national discipline movement in the city.

Djailani said the movement had not progressed as well as expected mainly due to difficulties such as the installation of traffic signs in the wrong places.

"We slap ourselves in the face if we place traffic signs in places where it is impossible for people to obey."

Djailani made the remarks during an inspection for a first- hand look at the implementation of the discipline movement on Jl. Sutoyo in East Jakarta.

He pointed to a bus shelter in front of the Indonesian Christian University which was too small to accommodate a large number of people.

Not far from the shelter there was a sign prohibiting motorists from stopping, which Djailani said was improper as it was too close to the bus stop.

"Officials should choose proper and logical places for traffic signs. Don't just prohibit people from doing this or that without thinking of the consequences."

The bus shelter was crowded with passengers, creating a long queue dotted with sidewalk vendors, and buses were forced to line up.

Oriyanto Sapardal, head of traffic supervision for the City Land Transportation Agency, who accompanied Djailani, said the street in front of the university was notorious for its traffic congestion because of the many buses plying a variety of routes, including Bekasi.

The discipline movement was launched in 1995 by President Soeharto to encourage people to observe the basic elements of discipline, ranging from queuing, disposing of litter in the proper places and obeying traffic regulations.

Djailani also visited crowded Jl. Perindustrian on the opposite side of the university where buses stopped recklessly to pick up and drop off passengers.

"Such a situation should not be happening if the discipline movement's cadres exercised tight control over the traffic and warned the drivers not stop there." (ind)