Sutiyoso satisfied with district performance

Sutiyoso satisfied with district performance

JAKARTA (JP): Governor Sutiyoso expressed his satisfaction on
Thursday after finding that City Hall employees at district
levels had been very responsive to his commitment to improve
public services.

After his inspections of the Kebayoran Lama and Pondok Pinang
district heads' offices in South Jakarta, Sutiyoso said all the
staffers in charge of health, burials, identity (ID) cards and
building permits had shown remarkable work.

The inspection was important for the governor who will make
his second accountability speech to the City Council in January,
after the first speech in April was rejected. The council said in
April that Sutiyoso failed to curb corruptive, collusive and
nepotistic (KKN) practices in City Hall and that public services
were still poor.

The governor then promised to improve his work by, among other
things, reducing the bureaucracy for the issuance of building
permits and eliminating illegal fees in ID card applications. He
also promised to improve health services at the community health
centers.

The city administration also planned to field an independent
team to see how far the districts and subdistricts have responded
to his pledge to improve public services.

Sutiyoso promised the City Council in April that by the end of
this year 10 district heads' offices would be able to process and
issue building permits. "At present, 30 of the total 42 district
heads' offices in the city are ready for the service.

During the inspection, Sutiyoso was assured that the burial
permit applications had become very simple. He cited the burial
application service at the Tanah Kusir public cemetery where now
only one authorized foundation is in charge.

In the past, in many districts, there were a lot of red-tape
involved in having the deceased buried.

"How much do you have to pay for a new ID card?" Sutiyoso
asked a man applying for an ID card at the Pondok Pinang district
head's office.

"Rp 1,000, sir," the man replied. Sutiyoso looked satisfied,
but said he wanted ID card applications made gratis.

"I have yet to be able to make the ID card issuance free of
charge. Until now the City Council has yet to issue a city bylaw
on the new regulation (for the free service)," Sutiyoso said.

In another encounter with a resident at a Kebayoran Lama
health center, Sutiyoso asked the man if he could see the doctor
at anytime during working hours. "Yes, Sir," said the man.

In many areas in the country, public health centers, known as
Puskesmas, have been notorious for their poor service. Many
doctors posted at health centers are halfhearted in serving the
public.

"In general, some of my requirements have been met despite
several constraints," Sutiyoso said after the inspection but he
did not say if he were optimistic that his second accountability
speech next year would be accepted by the council. (dja)