Tangerang court gets new chief

TANGERANG (JP): West Java High Court chief Padmadisastra has installed Soebardi as the new Tangerang District Court chief, replacing Soedardji who is being promoted to be a judge at the Tanjung Karang High Court in Lampung.

Padmadisastra said at the installation ceremony Saturday that court officers had to positively respond to reform in all sectors as is now being demanded by the public.

Tangerang Regent Agus Djunara also urged law officers to improve transparency, honesty and fairness related to the increasing demands for total reform.

"There is no other choice. We should face the people's demands with transparency and honesty," he said.

Soebardi, a former judge at the Central Jakarta District Court, said that he would soon investigate alleged illegal practices in his court.

"We will study the information about the illegal practices," he said.

The illegal practices allegedly conducted by the court include, among other things, issuance of birth and heritage certificates at a cost of between Rp 300,000 (US$26) and Rp 400,000 each. (41/jun)