TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama was furious knowing that tax officers’ performance was below expectation. Ahok reportedly gathered tax office staff at City Hall on Thursday, April 30, 2015 and threatened those who were dishonest will be mutated.
According to Ahok, it was tax officers who taught taxpayers to manipulate the tax they should pay. In return, the taxpayers bribe those tax officers with a certain amount of money. Therefore, Ahok also threatened delinquent business owners with legal actions.
“I will make them declare bankruptcy,” he said.
Jakarta Tax Office head Agus Bambang Setyowidodo admitted that about 320 or 40 percent of his staff showed bad performance, based on an evaluation he conducted for four months.
“They will be removed from their positions,” Agus told Tempo on Friday, May 1, 2015.
The staff, Agus said, had yet changed their mindset to online tax payment and preferred manual collection. Agus added that the method would cause tax manipulation initiated by tax payers and tax officers.
Public policy observer at Padjajaran University Yogi Suprayogi said tax officers’ incompetence had become one of the factors causing the government to miss the target of tax revenue.
“If tax officers and taxpayers worked together in manipulating the tax payment, then the removal was the right decision,” yogi said.
LINDA HAIRANI | JAYADI SUPRIADIN
