Sutiyoso objects to councillors' foreign trips
<p>Sutiyoso objects to councillors' foreign trips</p><p>Ahmad Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta</p><p> Governor Sutiyoso revealed on Wednesday that he planned to
issue a regulation that would prevent city councillors from
taking from the budgets of city agencies to finance their foreign
trips.</p><p>"Maybe, we will issue a decree that will prevent them using it
(the budgets). We will try it," Sutiyoso told reporters at City
Hall.</p><p>He had said earlier the councillors had forced the agencies to
finance their foreign trips and they could not refuse. "It's all
their own arrangement. But the officials could not refuse their
demands," he said.</p><p>Separately, City Council deputy chairman Chudlary Syafei
Hadzami claimed on Wednesday that the councillor's foreign trips
were arranged both by the administration and the council.</p><p>"It's not true. The trips were made under an agreement between
the administration and the council," Chudlary of the United
Development Party (PPP) told reporters.</p><p>He said that the trips were useful to broaden the councillors'
knowledge, saying that the council would propose budgets for
similar trips next year.</p><p>Fifteen councillors from City Council Commission D for
development affairs visited Beijing and Seoul in October with
funds from the city sanitation agency.</p><p>Another eight councillors of Commission C for financial and
budgetary affairs visited Bangkok to study taxes with funds from
the city revenue office and will return home this week.</p><p>Nine councillors from Commission A for administrative and
legal affairs visited Morocco and Spain to study sister cities
with funds from the inter-city cooperation office and will also
return home this week.</p><p>The 2001 city budget allocated Rp 11 billion for councillors'
foreign and domestic trips but the general public and non-
governmental organizations slammed these trips as useless and a
waste of taxpayers money.</p><p>The councillors' foreign trips were apparently merely junkets
as had been indicated by a letter from the Indonesian Consulate
in Los Angeles last year which stated that the councillors, who
planned to study taxes, did not meet any officials from Los
Angeles' tax office.</p><p>In 2000, some 16 councillors from Commission D visited
Australia, Japan and South Africa with funds from city-owned
developer PT Pembangunan Jaya Ancol.</p><p>Besides taking an allowance from the developer of US$5,000
each, the councillors also received Rp 50 million each from the
city budget.</p><p>The Prosecutor's Office investigated the case and declared
three councillors Tarmidi Suhardjo and Tarmidi Edy Suwarno from
the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) and
Ali Imron from PPP as suspects for taking the allowances without
joining the trips.</p><p>Fearing public criticism, the council did not propose a fund
for study trips in the 2002 city budget but increased "funds for
studies" in the city agencies.</p><p>Separately activist Azas Tigor Nainggolan said that the trips
were a result of collusion between the councillors and
administration' officials.</p><p>"The councillors used the funds for pleasure trips, while the
officials needed their projects to be approved by the
councillors," Tigor said on Wednesday.</p>
issue a regulation that would prevent city councillors from
taking from the budgets of city agencies to finance their foreign
trips.</p><p>"Maybe, we will issue a decree that will prevent them using it
(the budgets). We will try it," Sutiyoso told reporters at City
Hall.</p><p>He had said earlier the councillors had forced the agencies to
finance their foreign trips and they could not refuse. "It's all
their own arrangement. But the officials could not refuse their
demands," he said.</p><p>Separately, City Council deputy chairman Chudlary Syafei
Hadzami claimed on Wednesday that the councillor's foreign trips
were arranged both by the administration and the council.</p><p>"It's not true. The trips were made under an agreement between
the administration and the council," Chudlary of the United
Development Party (PPP) told reporters.</p><p>He said that the trips were useful to broaden the councillors'
knowledge, saying that the council would propose budgets for
similar trips next year.</p><p>Fifteen councillors from City Council Commission D for
development affairs visited Beijing and Seoul in October with
funds from the city sanitation agency.</p><p>Another eight councillors of Commission C for financial and
budgetary affairs visited Bangkok to study taxes with funds from
the city revenue office and will return home this week.</p><p>Nine councillors from Commission A for administrative and
legal affairs visited Morocco and Spain to study sister cities
with funds from the inter-city cooperation office and will also
return home this week.</p><p>The 2001 city budget allocated Rp 11 billion for councillors'
foreign and domestic trips but the general public and non-
governmental organizations slammed these trips as useless and a
waste of taxpayers money.</p><p>The councillors' foreign trips were apparently merely junkets
as had been indicated by a letter from the Indonesian Consulate
in Los Angeles last year which stated that the councillors, who
planned to study taxes, did not meet any officials from Los
Angeles' tax office.</p><p>In 2000, some 16 councillors from Commission D visited
Australia, Japan and South Africa with funds from city-owned
developer PT Pembangunan Jaya Ancol.</p><p>Besides taking an allowance from the developer of US$5,000
each, the councillors also received Rp 50 million each from the
city budget.</p><p>The Prosecutor's Office investigated the case and declared
three councillors Tarmidi Suhardjo and Tarmidi Edy Suwarno from
the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) and
Ali Imron from PPP as suspects for taking the allowances without
joining the trips.</p><p>Fearing public criticism, the council did not propose a fund
for study trips in the 2002 city budget but increased "funds for
studies" in the city agencies.</p><p>Separately activist Azas Tigor Nainggolan said that the trips
were a result of collusion between the councillors and
administration' officials.</p><p>"The councillors used the funds for pleasure trips, while the
officials needed their projects to be approved by the
councillors," Tigor said on Wednesday.</p>