Jakarta City Council Finds Irregularities in Budget Plan

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta Legislative Council speaker Prasetyo Edi Marsudi conducted an investigation into the 2016 City Budget using an independent auditor. Prasetyo said that there were indications that Jakarta administration’s working units had tried to manipulate the budget draft by setting up budgets without nomenclatures.

“There are budgets without programs,” Prasetio said Friday, November 27.

Prasetyo added that the total amount of the fund was Rp1.88 trillion (US$144.6 million). For instance, Prasetyo revealed, from a total budget of Rp1.58 trillion (US$121.6 million) allocated for the Education Agency, only Rp194 billion (US$15 million) was actually allocated for several programs.

Prasetyo also found a regional working unit that intentionally inflated its budget, without revealing the name of the agency. Some agencies, Prasetyo added, reduced their budget without explanations.

Therefore, Prasetyo and Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama agreed to check the 2016 city budget in a bid to promote transparency.

Education Agency head Arie Budiman said that Prasetyo’s findings were mistaken.

“It’s impossible that we planned a budget without nomenclatures,” he said.

Arie claimed that his institution had used the e-budgeting system to prepare the 2016 budget plan. According to Arie, budget without programs will be automatically detected by the system.

ERWAN HERMAWAN