Street kids ask politician's wife to return vehicle

JAKARTA (JP): Dozens of street children staged a noisy protest on Saturday in front of politician Sri Bintang Pamungkas's house, claiming his wife, who is the advisor of an organization for street children, had stolen their official car.

"Give us back the red Espass. It's ours. You took it without our permission," the children, who were in rags and had painted their faces and bodies black, chanted outside Bintang's home in Bukit Permai residential complex, Cibubur, East Jakarta.

"Without the car, we cannot go on field trips. We cannot see the sceneries. We cannot have fun," the children, aged between nine and 15 years, said.

Bintang's wife, Ernalia, is the advisor of the University of Indonesia's Solidarity Act for Oppressed People (SARAT-UI), the body which manages the Lingkar Selatan transit house in Depok, South Jakarta, where the children stay.

Bintang, awaken by the commotion, explained that the car was being repaired at an auto repair shop as it was out of order when he received it from security officials at the university.

"We didn't steal the car. We just feel responsible for the car and will soon return it to SARAT-UI and not directly to you.

"The car, which was in a state of disrepair, had been left unattended at the parking lot of the School of Psychology for five days before the security officials contacted us in the middle of February as the car's title was under my wife Ernalia's name," he said.

"Moreover, there is evidence the car wasn't used for the transit house's activities such as delivering food for the children. Instead, the workers of the transit house used the car for other activities, such as advocating farmers," said Bintang.

The transit house's manager had also failed to pay the tax which should have been paid six months ago, he added.

The Daihatsu Espass, with license number B 2030 JZ, was presented by PT Astra International to SARAT-UI on May 11, 2000 under Ernalia's name to facilitate the processing of its documents.

Taufiqqurahman from the Community of Indonesian Street Children (KAJI), which coordinates the transit house, said the car had often been used by Ernalia and Bintang for their personal activities. (bby)