Yogya gets one-stop licensing office

YOGYAKARTA: In a bid to provide better services to the community, the Yogyakarta municipal government is planning to establish a one-stop licensing office, where people can obtain the licenses they need to run businesses or carry out other activities in the municipality.

"I plan to make it the best, most luxurious, air-conditioned office building that the municipal government has, as it will be our symbol of service.

"It's OK by me if it's even better than the mayor's office," Yogyakarta Major Herry Zudianto said here earlier this week.

With the establishment of the office, he said, people would not need to go to a variety of offices to get different licenses as at present, as all types of license, ranging from house- building permits to a variety of business licenses, can be obtained at the same office.

"That way, we hope to be able to provide the public with much- improved services," Herry said, adding that the office was planning to start operating soon this year.

Herry added that many government officials had a misperception regarding public services. They did not consider that the public deserved the best the government could offer.

That explained why many offices that provided public services usually had minimal facilities, even in Yogyakarta municipality, which aims to become a city of trade and services.

"I think it's time to change such a misguided perception," he said. -- JP