Soeharto calls for more low-cost apartments
Soeharto calls for more low-cost apartments
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto urged urban authorities yesterday to build more low cost apartments, saying that this is the most effective way of solving acute housing shortages.
Speaking during a ceremony dedicating 240,000 units of houses throughout Indonesia, Soeharto said soaring land prices combined with rapid urbanization has made it too costly for the city administrations to build houses and their infrastructure.
The costs of building roads, ducts, electricity and telephone lines -- which the administrations have to provide -- are far higher under horizontal expansion than vertical expansion, he said.
These facilities under horizontal expansion have higher maintenance and operational costs, and people spend more time and money on transportation, making the cost of living in cities high.
Burden
"On a national scale, this is a heavy burden," Soeharto said.
"Urban development must be more compact and intensive. One way of doing this is by building apartments," he said.
He proposed that low cost apartments be built in places of slum areas for the benefit of those who live in the area. "The rejuvenation of slum areas must not create the impression that the poor are being evicted to make way for the rich."
Jakarta, where housing shortage is probably the most acute in Indonesia, is leading the way in building low-cost apartments.
The ceremony yesterday was appropriately concentrated in Cengkareng, West Jakarta, where a new apartment complex with 768 units has been built, designed specially for people who work in nearby factories.
The Rp 30 billion project was built by Perum Perumnas, the state-run housing development company. The apartments, measuring 21 square meters each, will be rented out, with monthly rentals of between Rp 69,000 and Rp 94,000.
Seven companies located nearby have already reserved at least 400 units which they would use to house their workers.
Later, during a meeting with inhabitants of the Cengkareng apartments, Soeharto said living in high rise buildings represent a big change for people more accustomed to living in houses.
"People have got to get used to it. It may be difficult. But if they refuse to move into apartments, then they won't get any houses," he said. "If they prefer to live in slums, then they are refusing an opportunity to improve their prosperity."
Soeharto in his speech said that the apartments in Cengkareng, along with all the other houses inaugurated yesterday, met the "health" criteria, although he did not spell out the criteria.
The president acknowledged that housing is one of life's basic needs, along with food, clothing, education, health and work. "But providing houses for people with low income is not easy. Houses are expensive to build."
He said one of the reasons for the high costs of housing is high land prices, especially in urban areas.
Prices
He urged governors, regency chiefs and city mayors to find ways of keeping land prices down so that the cost of building houses could also be kept down.
"I realize that providing land at low prices is not an easy task. Demand for land continues to rise while the sum of land remains the same.
"But if we let this trend continue, then only those with high income can afford to stay to live in houses. Those with low income will be forced to live in slum areas that are unhealthy and unfit for habitation.
"This is not consistent with our development objectives," Soeharto said.
The President urged city administrators to pay more attention to the concept of integrated urban development, which takes into account such aspects as spatial planning, population projects, housing projects and the development of infrastructure and social facilities.
During the meeting with Cengkareng residents, Soeharto reminded housing developers of their obligation to build six low- cost houses for every one luxury and three semi-luxury houses.
"Many of them have neglected this duty. We will ask them to fulfill this. And if they continue to ignore it, we will be forced to seize the luxury and semi-luxury houses, auction them and use the proceeds to build the low cost houses," he said to the laud applause by the residents. (emb)