Road contractors blame shoddy work on official corruption
JAKARTA (JP): Private road contractors working for the city administration told The Jakarta Post yesterday they have to construct substandard roads because of three factors: Bribery, bad timing and theft.
"After winning the tender, we have to pay 'administration fees' of about Rp 15,000 (US$6.9) to Rp 25,000 to every desk which processes the contract," said Hendro, who requested his real name be withheld.
But the largest cut is taken in the "thank-you fees" they have to give the project leaders, the size of which is weighted to the contractors projected profit.
"For a Rp 50 million profit, for instance, we usually let project leaders take Rp 15 million to Rp 20 million. If the profit is smaller, say, Rp 30 million, we could usually afford Rp 5 to Rp 6 million," said Hendro.
"Sometimes project leaders insist on larger portions and as a result, we have to lower the road quality by reducing the materials," said Zulkifli, who also requested an alias.
Zulkifli added that project leaders often ask for their share prior to the projects completion.
Another reason for the low quality of roads is that contractors have to begin road repairs or construction as soon as their contracts are approved, even in the rainy season, which slows down the pace of work.
"We have to speed up project completion at the cost of quality because we are afraid of not meeting the deadline and being fined while our jobs are often interrupted by the rain," Hendro said.
He also said that their stockpiles of material in temporary storage for projects, particularly in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, are often stolen.
"The thieves not only steal cement, but sometimes also take away the roofs and windows of the storehouse," Hendro said, adding that paying security guards would cost more than the losses from the theft.
Contradiction
Both contractors were responding to the statements of city councilors, who on Tuesday said that premature road damage in, endemic to the city, is a reflection of the incompetence of the road contractors.
M.H. Ritonga, the head of the City Council, said he found it hard to believe that rainfall alone accounts for the bad conditions on city roads.
The councilors' statements were in contradiction to those of H. Soeharto, the head of the city public works office, who told the Post Wednesday that flooding, not workmanship, is to blame for road damage .
"One week of downpour or inundation is, of course, enough to damage roads," Soeharto said.
According to Soeharto, the unfinished city drainage system is the biggest problem, and until floods are prevented the roads are going to continue to bear signs of the onslaught.
When asked why his office does not improve road lifespan by attending to problems, Soeharto said that the city administration's budget for road maintenance is limited.
According to the 1993/94 city budget, the amount allocated for the maintenance of roads, bridges and other infrastructures is Rp 7 billion ($3.2 million). (06)