Riding the Corruption Express

Riding the Corruption Express

Indonesia has been listed as one of the world's most corrupt
countries, a label that the experience I will share with you will
corroborate.

Graft cases adorn the front pages of the print media almost
every day. Unfortunately, corruption on the train has not
attracted much of the media's attention, although this practice
could endanger hundreds of train passengers. For just Rp 2,000
you can ask to be dropped of at the train station of your
choosing. One piece of advice, though. Never let the engineer
know you are a "novice".

I had a unique experience with this small form of graft on May
23, when I took the Pakuan express train that plies the Gambir-
Bogor route. It happened 38 days before the fatal train crash
near the Pasar Minggu railway station when three electric trains
collided into one another. I have a suspicion that the lead train
in this crash, which was reportedly stationary at the time of the
incident, was dropping off some passengers -- not at the right
station, mind you.

At the time I was planning to attend a rehearsal for the play
Sobrat at WS Rendra's Bengkel Teater in Cipayung, Depok. Dudi, a
friend of mine and a member of the drama group, suggested that I
get off the train at Citayam station and then take a motorcycle
taxi to the theater.

When I took the Pakuan train, I did not know that unlike
regular trains that stop at every station along the Gambir-Bogor
route, the Pakuan only stops in Bogor and Gambir. On Saturdays
and Sundays, it also makes a brief stop at the University of
Indonesia station.

Because I was unfamiliar with the stations, when the Pakuan
made a brief stop at the University of Indonesia station I
approached the conductor and told him that I wanted to get off at
Citayam. "Move to the front coach," the middle-aged conductor
said somewhat mysteriously.

I complied. The train stopped briefly several times before it
reached Citayam. I wondered why the doors remained closed when it
stopped. The same thing happened at Citayam station, where I was
supposed to exit the train.

Depressed, I decided to enjoy the trip to Bogor, the final
destination for the Pakuan. I waited at the Bogor station for
almost two hours before my Pakuan began to chug back to Gambir in
Jakarta.

I was overwhelmed with despair because I did not know which
route to take to reach Rendra's theater.

So, when the Pakuan was heading back to Jakarta, I decided to
move from the rear coach to the front one. Again I asked the
conductor at which stations the train would stop. He said it
would not stop until it reached Gambir. After that, it would stop
at Kota station, its final destination.

I saw several passengers knocking on the door separating the
passengers from the train driver. Very quickly they were let into
the engineer's compartment. I learned they wanted to exit the
train before Gambir. I tried knocking on the door myself, hoping
to get dropped at Citayam. "May I come in, sir?" I said to the
conductor, who, instead of replying, hurriedly closed the door.
All I could do was watch Citayam station get farther and farther
away.

With nothing to lose, I fell into line behind three passengers
approaching the engineer's compartment. I saw them fish out some
money from their pockets. "How much?" I asked. One of them
replied, "Only two thousand."

This time I did not bother to ask if I could come in. I
knocked on the door and hurried in when it opened. I shoved two
Rp 1,000 banknotes into the hand of the man who opened the door,
who wore the uniform of an employee of the communications
ministry. He asked me where I wanted to stop.

"We cannot stop right at the station. It is not allowed," he
said.

The train stopped about 500 meters before the Manggarai
station and I got off.

Walking along the railway track, I heaved a heavy sigh: "For
the sake of a few Rp 1,000 banknotes, the engineer is more than
ready to bring the train to a halt in the middle of the track."
And the possibility of a train collision suddenly struck me.

Corruption is not the sole domain of white-collar workers.
Even train crews have a few tricks to make a little extra money
using the tools at their disposal, in this case a locomotive.

--Blontank Poer