Too many employees getting salaries for nothing: Sutiyoso
JAKARTA (JP): City Governor Sutiyoso admitted on Friday that many of his 40,000 new staff members, the majority of whom were transferred from government administration offices due to the implementation of regional autonomy, have no work to do although they still receive their full monthly salaries.
"To overcome the situation, we will not extend the tenure of employees who have reached their pension age, despite regulations specifying that they can be extended," Sutiyoso said after attending a ceremony at City Hall.
Civil servants are eligible for pension at 55 years old. For echelon I and II staff it is possible for the term to be extended for another five years.
About 2,000 of the new employees are echelon I and II.
Sutiyoso said the city administration would not recruit new employees for several years.
City officials who were earlier hired from the Indonesian Military (TNI), would also be returned to their respective units.
Sutiyoso expressed hope that these efforts could solve the "unemployment in disguise" and that there would be no employees receiving salaries for doing no work.
The city has about 120,000 employees, which includes the 40,000 new staff who were transferred from seven provincial ministry offices in the city.
They came from the Jakarta offices of the ministries of: national education; health and social welfare; industry and trade; manpower and transmigration; agriculture; communications; and forestry.
City Spokesman Muhayat had earlier said that the administration is still able to pay salaries to all of its employees, despite the central government only having disbursed Rp 300 billion (US$27 million) of the Rp 700 billion pledged this year.
"We have reserve funds which could be used to pay employees," Muhayat claimed, adding that the 2001 City Budget allocated Rp 1.3 trillion for employees' salaries.
In Friday's ceremony at City Hall, Sutiyoso installed Firman Hutajulu as new chief of the Public Order Office, Rustam Effendy as head of the Land Transportation and Traffic Control (DLLAJ) and Yoyon Ardisoma as chief of the City Fire Agency.
Firman, who was the former secretary for West Jakarta, replaced Hadi Utomo, while Rustam, who was Central Jakarta's secretary, replaced Buyung Atang.
Yoyon, who was the deputy chief in the fire agency, replaced his boss Soeharso.
Hadi, Buyung and Soeharso, all Army colonels, are approaching their pension age and will return to the Army's headquarters.
In addition to Friday's reshuffle the city administration also plans to replace 25 other officials who have reached their pension age.
Sutiyoso admitted that another reason for the terms not being extended was that some of the officials were allegedly involved in a financial scandal relating to an overseas comparative study trip.
"We don't want to wait for the court's decision as to whether the officials are guilty or not. It would take time, so I decided not to extend their terms," he said.
Two senior officials, head of the City Development Agency Bambang Soengkono and head of the City Planning Agency Ahmaddin Ahmad, are among officials who will be replaced.
Bambang, Ahmaddin and several city officials joined 16 city councillors on a trip to Australia, South Africa and Japan, which is alleged to have been illegally financed by PT Pembangunan Jaya Ancol and the 2000 City Budget in October last year. (jun)