Unjustified levies

Unjustified levies

During World War II, when the Dutch anticipated an attack by Japan on the Netherlands East Indies, they asked for help from the Americans and other allies. The Dutch were disappointed, however, because what arrived did not live up to their expectations. The Dutch said that the help was too little and too late.

When I look at the situation now in fighting corruption or illegal levies, I see the same thing; we are doing too little and too late. Illegal levies have existed for a long time. Ask any businessperson who deals with the bureaucracy and you will get the almost identical answer that nothing can be done if you do not participate in this illegal activity. Anticipation is a must because for businesspeople time is money. What they lose in illegal levies they try to get it back from their customers. Are these levies so secret that the government cannot detect them?

I am sure the government knows all about the levies. In his state address of Aug. 16, 1976, the President said: "Government officials are servants of the community and not the other way around. They should not commercialize their position by only performing their duties when they can expect something in return or be reluctant to do their job when there is no prospect of getting a reward."

The government's ongoing attempt to abolish illegal levies is too late, because the President already warned the bureaucracy about these levies 20 years ago.

But we must not forget that the President, in the same address, also appealed to businesses: "To the business community, I appeal not to give grease money in any form to the officials, whose duty is to serve the people. Such gifts are poison, which can destroy discipline and wreck the existing law and order and the honesty of the officials."

If by chance a Don Quixote businessman courageously but foolishly take it upon himself to stop paying these illegal levies and do things according to the existing regulations, the first thing he will be faced with is saying goodbye to business.

The government knows this, but because almost everybody is involved, everything is kept quiet. The levy monster has become bigger and fiercer. Now, on the initiative of the Minister of Manpower, the government has started to take serious action against its bureaucratic evils.

Why didn't the government fight the monster when it was still a baby? At the beginning the government did something but it was too little.

The President has reiterated that corruption is immoral and destructive to development. When corruption is deep rooted, however, it becomes a way of life and people try to justify it.

Some observers say that in developing countries corruption might have a positive side, because it greases the wheels of the economy, lubricates commerce and helps overcome red tape.

As Pancasila people, though, we cannot accept the theory that the end justifies means. This smells like communism. So we should observe religion and abide by the existing laws and regulations. It is not a matter of what we get, but, more importantly, how we get it.

SOEGIH ARTO

Jakarta