Wed, 01 Aug 2001

The sauna that city councillors so desire

JAKARTA (JP): One of the things city councillors most want, apparently, is a sauna.

They earlier demanded that the city's administration provide them with a new building with facilities similar to those in the Health Center for City Employees on the 24th floor of the city administration building in Central Jakarta.

The center has a sauna, a fitness center, a gym and massage rooms.

Visitors are required to take an elevator to the 23rd floor and then walk up the stairs to the top floor of the building, built in 1976 under the instruction of then city governor Ali Sadikin.

City administration spokesman Muhayat refused to comment further on the proposal by City Council for a new council building, to be equipped with a sauna and fitness center.

But he told The Jakarta Post on Monday that the health center at the city administration building is provided for employees to keep them fit during their busy working days.

The three-by-four meter sauna is located on the left of the health center with six bathrooms in front of it. A poster titled "Scandinavian Bath" shows pictures of how to use the sauna, hangs in front of the sauna.

Before entering the sauna, which has a dark brown wooden interior, a user usually takes a shower in the bathroom first.

According to the poster, the user should take off their towel while sitting on the wooden bench and enjoy the hot steam from a coal-fired stove, located on the left, inside the sauna.

The user can pour water onto the stove whenever the steam level falls. When the user's body becomes dry, he or she can take a shower before enjoying the sauna again.

A sauna or a steambath is believed to be able to reduce body fat.

Wives of city officials, grouped under the organization, Dharma Wanita, often use the sauna to lose weight.

"But it's not only for fat people, the sauna is also good for people who have average weight to maintain their health and reduce fat," an employee at the sauna said.

There are two employees, two masseurs and four gym instructors at the health center.

The instructors teach aerobics and body exercises, usually in the morning, in the four-by-eight meter gym located behind the sauna.

In front of the gym, a fitness room with modern equipment, is also available for use by city officials.

To relax, officials visit either of the two massage rooms behind the gym.

The masseurs are usually given tips of between Rp 20,000 (US$2) and Rp 50,000.

"The male masseur is for male officials while the female one is for the female officials," said an official at the center, who requested anonymity.

He said only echelon-three officials to the city governor could become members of the health center.

Although there are thousands of officials among the 150,000 employed in the city administration, only dozens of them are registered as members of the center.

It's still unclear why only a few officials have joined the center, which only charges a monthly fee of Rp 10,000 ($1).

City Governor Sutiyoso has reportedly been seen using the center just three times since he was elected in 1997.

Only deputy governor for administrative affairs Abdul Kahfi and deputy governor for financial affairs Fauzie Alvi Yasin are senior officials who reportedly use the health center on a regular basis.

The city has four deputy governors.

City Council has complained that their building, located on Jl. Kebon Sirih, Central Jakarta, is no longer appropriate for the activities of the 85 councillors. They have therefore proposed to the city administration to build a new building for the council.

They earlier suggested that the new building should be built in the Kemayoran area, Central Jakarta. But later, they suggested that the administration buy the Timor building, located on Jl. Medan Merdeka Timur, Central Jakarta and establish that as the new council building. (jun)