Poor service spoils fervor in land status upgrading plan
Poor service spoils fervor in land status upgrading plan
By Pandaya and Ida Indawati Khouw
JAKARTA (JP): Unusually large crowds of people clutching files
have been massing at land affairs offices throughout Greater
Jakarta, jostling each other and openly grumbling about the
services. It is as though they have a deadline to beat.
They are city residents who don't want to miss the rare chance
to upgrade the legal status of their property from basically
state land into personal ownership for legal certainty.
Citizens from all walks of life, from those coming on old
motorbikes to those riding in shiny luxurious cars, are willing
to spend long hours hanging around the offices where almost no
seats are available.
The program that began earlier this year has received
enthusiastic response from the public.
Many people arrive at the office as early as 5 a.m. hoping to
get a registration number which is available only before 11 a.m.,
otherwise they may have to wait another week or even months
because registration rotates among subdistricts.
The Central Jakarta land affairs office, which has processed
over 2,400 applications since the program started, reports that
more than 300 people flock there every day to have the status of
their land upgraded.
But why the rush?
"We are afraid the policy will be reversed once the minister
(in charge of land affairs) is replaced," says Halim, who has a
house-shop in Tomang, West Jakarta.
Halim's view reflects the widespread fear of government
inconsistencies in introducing policies, especially where land is
concerned, as is often the case.
The fear lingers despite State Minister of Land
Affairs/chairman of the National Land Agency Hasan Basri Durin's
promise that this time the policy will not be repealed and that
there is no deadline for applications.
"The government policy on land ownership is now clear. All
land in housing areas will be given ownership status," he said on
June 12.
Under the old central government policy, land in housing areas
was mostly owned by the state. Citizens are permitted to build on
the land either to live in or open business.
People acquiring land to build a house (HGB), according to the
old rule, are required to apply for a 30-year title, which is
extendible for another 20 years. The title for land appropriated
for business purposes (HGU), such as building a shop or a
factory, is valid for 35 years and is extendible for another 25
years.
Ministerial Decree No. 6/1998, intended to help the less well-
to-do, also allows procurement of personal ownership status for a
shop-house.
It limits the maximum acreage of a home with personal
ownership status to 2,000 square meters, otherwise the property
will be given HGU status and treated as such.
But, confusingly, the decree allows people to own a maximum of
5,000 square meters of land on the condition that it consists of
more than one plot and the homes are "not located in the same
area".
The relatively cheap administrative fees that the government
charges are a major attraction too. People seeking ownership
status for up to 200 square meters of land are exempt from fees.
The fee for a plot between 201 square meters and 600 square
meters is set at 2 percent times the area times the value of one
square meter of the land, while for a plot between 601 square
meter and 2,000 square meter the fee is set at 6 percent times
the area times the value of one square meter. The estimated value
is determined by the government.
Corrupt practices
Some people are happy with the service, at least for now.
Satisfactory service was reported during the beginning of the
program early this year when the maximum acreage eligible for
ownership upgrading was 200 square meters.
The unprecedented surge in the number of people seeking to
upgrade their land status has, predictably, given rise to corrupt
practices. Applicants complain about poor service, ununiform
rules among districts, inflated fees and omnipresent scalpers.
"The officials have failed to honor their promise to complete
my application in a month," said Daya who submitted his
registration forms at the West Jakarta land office in Kembangan,
on March 23. He had received no response by July 24.
He said he and many other applicants went and checked the
announcement board twice a week since April only to find his name
wasn't there. He was told to be patient.
At the same office, people who want to get quick service are
willing to buy application forms from scalpers for Rp 11,000. The
official price is only Rp 7,500. Some reported they were fooled
by scalpers who sold registration numbers for between Rp 20,000
and Rp 40,000 each.
"When a man in the crowd shouted and charged that the
officials were colluding with scalpers, the bureaucrat declared
the numbers invalid and made us queue for registration," an
applicant, Lili from Kebon Jeruk, said last week.
Susilowati and Sundari, who were among the crowd in the
Central Jakarta land affairs office, said they had been subjected
to illegal levies.
"Officials in charge of selling application forms demanded Rp
10,000 for quick service," Sundari said.
Susilowati said she had stood in line for three hours when the
registration counter was suddenly closed.
"More employees should have been serving after realizing that
the number of applicants would be this huge," she said.
Many are amused by the differences in the amount of fees that
each mayoralty has set while they are supposed to be uniform
because the program refers to the same ministerial decree.
In West and South Jakarta, some residents who tended to their
applications early this year were excited because they spent only
between Rp 10,000 and Rp 26,000 for a 200-square-meter plot.
But many less wealthy residents in Bogor, West Java, have been
amazed to find the grand total they have to pay: Rp 390,000.
"When I expressed my surprise, the lady behind the counter
replied, 'That's it. You want to pay now?'," said M. Salmona, who
postponed his application because he considered it too expensive.
Bureaucrats, who have been bombarded with calls for an end to
corruption, collusion and nepotism, duck for cover when the
alleged poor service is mentioned.