Take action on deviant officials: Councilor

JAKARTA (JP): Strong action should be taken against officials who abuse their power in granting permits to establishments in Kemang and other residential areas, a councilor said yesterday.

The council's deputy spokesman, Ismunandar, said that action should not only be taken against building owners.

On Thursday five establishments -- the Soto Kudus Kemang restaurant, the Jaya furniture show room, J & J rattan furniture store, Iams Eukanuba dog food store, and the Jawa Tua antique furniture show room -- were closed down by the South Jakarta mayoralty.

Owners were given one week before the buildings had to be used in accordance with their housing permits.

Owner claimed that they had not been notified beforehand, in contradiction with mayor Pardjoko's claim.

Ismunandar said that action against officials was necessary "to avoid the opinion that the public was always to blame in cases of the abuse of permits."

He urged the municipality to announce the expiry of building permits and identify those who had violated permits.

"These efforts are necessary to calm down other building owners, who fear that their buildings will be closed by the authorities," Ismunandar said.

As of yesterday, not one cafe had been shut down. Mayoralty officials said that this was because they had only checked 27 out of an estimated 123 non-residential buildings in Kemang.

Governor Surjadi Soedirdja admitted earlier that several cafes and restaurants in the Kemang area had operated with housing permits because of irresponsible city officials.

Yesterday he issued a reassurance that existing establishments with temporary housing permits would be allowed to operate until their permits expired.

An establishment owner, Jacobus Tirta, of the J & J rattan furniture gallery, which was formerly a cafe, demanded the city be fair in it's policies.

He admitted that he did not have proper permits but feared that well connected establishments would be left alone.

"All establishments, without legal permits, should be closed down regardless of who owns the establishment," he said yesterday.

Another owner said that a nearby cafe, which was often frequented by celebrities, also lacked proper permits but had not been shut down. Officials had claimed they had not yet checked these cafes.

Uce Hamzah, the owner of Soto Kudus Kemang said that the procedures to obtain permits were complicated.

"But when it comes to closures, why weren't we notice? What kind of municipality do we have?" she said, adding that her business had been started only six months ago.

The owners said that they supported the plan as long as it was both consistent and fair.

Besides a written notice, D.J Siboro, the mayoralty's spokesperson, said that business owners had been repeatedly told of the plan via officials with microphones driving through Kemang.

The mayoralty's data so far shows that other establishments: the Radjasa Wahana Wiratama and Bibet Warung restaurants posessed housing permits, while Mitra Hadi Prana gallery had a registration card from the city's trade and industrial office. (ste/11)