The Rp 7 billion mansion
The Rp 7 billion mansion
The success of Indonesia's economic development efforts of the
last two decades has of late made many of us accustomed to seeing
advertisements offering pricey housing projects with homes that
cost from several hundred million rupiah up to two billion. Of
course, in a country with an annual per capita income of only
US$920 and some 25 million people still living below the poverty
line, only a handful of people can afford to own a Rp 2 billion
mansion.
So, we cannot hide our astonishment upon reading a report that
the construction of a new official residence for the provincial
governor of Central Java in Semarang may cost Rp 7 billion, or
the equivalent of roughly $3.128 million.
According to the report, the initial budget for the
construction of the mansion was "only" Rp 4 billion. But due to
some design changes, among others a decision to use Italian
marble flooring instead of a local product, the cost has shot up
to Rp 7 billion. The additional cost is reportedly also due to a
plan to build two special guest rooms for the President and the
Vice President if they happen to visit Semarang and want to stay
overnight.
The report also says that the plan has been rejected by the
budget committee of the provincial legislative council because it
violates the standard price level for such a project, set by the
National Planning Agency (Bappenas). The council has also set up
a special committee to further evaluate the plan.
The idea of having to build special rooms for the President
and Vice President in case they want to stay in Semarang, borders
on the absurd. How many nights have the President and Vice
President ever stayed over in Semarang? Does that number justify
building special guest rooms?
We can foretell that if the rooms are built they will be
unused most of the year because the rightful users are not there
to inhabit them. This can be easily predicted because, in line
with Javanese custom, nobody else will dare to sleep in them for
fear of being disrespectful.
The point is that the fact that plans are afoot to build a Rp
7 billion mansion for a provincial governor is yet another
indication that some people here are totally indifferent to the
public's feelings. Or perhaps those people have become so
calloused that they have lost their sensitivity to the fact that
a large portion of our people are still poor. To a large number
of Indonesian people, to even see one million rupiah is beyond
their wildest dreams.
We must remember that Central Java has its share of the
nation's least developed villages, which are getting Rp 20
million in subsidies yearly from the central government. We
assume Rp 7 billion would help a lot in the efforts to eradicate
poverty in the province.
Given the dominant position of the executive branches of
government in our current system one might expect the objections
raised by the local legislative council to be ignored. Except, of
course, if some element of the higher executive branch, for
instance the Ministry of Home Affairs, or the chairman of
Bappenas, decides to intervene due to public concern over the
matter.
It seems reasonable, therefore, that the Minister of Home
Affairs should take a firm stand on this matter.
We are living at a time when a growing number of people are
becoming sensitive to social issues. The public is already
embittered by the widening of gap between the rich and the poor.
In some cases this dissatisfaction has reached a point of
frustration. To continue to build the Rp 7 billion governor's
mansion will not only hurt feelings but may strengthen the
growing outrage at injustice in society.