Teachers yet to receive allowances

JAKARTA: Teachers at some state elementary schools in South Jakarta have yet to receive their allowances for the first three months of this year.

Late last year, the city administration announced that all state elementary school teachers would receive monthly allowances of Rp 85,000 (about US$8.50), retroactive to January 2001.

A teacher at a school in Pesanggrahan, South Jakarta, said on Thursday that last December he received his retroactive allowance for the first seven months of 2001.

Earlier this month, he received his allowance for the rest of 2001, but has yet to receive anything for 2002.

The teacher, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that elementary school teachers were always taken advantage of but were afraid to complain.

The head of the financial unit of the city's primary education office, Ayenk, said teachers in South Jakarta had not received their allowances for the January to March period of this year because the office was late in disbursing the money.--Antara