Vendors and agency reach deal

JAKARTA,(JP): The vendors in Kebon Jati market, Tanah Abang, and city-owned market agency PD Pasar Jaya finally agreed on Friday to choose the derelict Surya cinema as a temporary location for their small businesses.

Heri, the secretary of the vendors' association of Kebon Jati market, said the cinema was more suitable than the area outside the Tanah Abang railway station previously proposed by Pasar Jaya.

Speaking after a hearing with the City Council's Commission B for economic affairs, Heri said they refused to be moved to the station because it was too far and was devoid of customers.

PD Pasar Jaya had planned to renovate the Kebon Jati market and temporarily move the vendors to the station. But the vendors rejected the idea and brought their protests to the City Council.

Currently, the vendors occupy 626 kiosks in Kebon Jati market, while the planned renovated-market will only provide 108 kiosks for the small businesses, sparking a fear that many of them will not be able to have kiosks there.

"We hope PD Pasar Jaya will prioritize us for the new kiosks there," Heri remarked.

In response, the managing director of PD Pasar Jaya, Syahril Tanjung, assured the vendors that they would be able to continue their businesses in the renovated Kebon Jati market.

However, a problem over the price of the kiosks is still lingering. PD Pasar Jaya is demanding a price of Rp 5 million (US$526.3) per meter square. The vendors, however, have rejected this, saying they could not afford it.

"It has been calculated. And the vendors can buy the kiosks by a loan facility over a period of up to five years," Syahril explained.

Both sides would continue the talks next Monday.

Meanwhile, the head of City Council's Commission B, Syarif Zulkarnaen, said the vendors should come to the councillors should the negotiations become deadlocked. (07/04)