Ahok Rejects Meeting Allowance Proposal for DPRD Members

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama refused to approve Rp 300,000 meeting allowance budget allocation for Jakarta Regional Representative Council (DPRD) members. Ahok asserted that the allowance has no legal basis.

Ahok said that he had received a letter from Prasetio Edi Marsudi, Speaker of the Jakarta DPRD, about the allowance. Ahok added that he had sent a reply stating his rejection through the Regional Secretary. "I have sent a disposition letter to the Regional Secretary, I said there is no regulation [that regulates meeting allowance for DPRD members]," Ahok said at the City Hall on Wednesday, February 10, 2016.

Ahok argued that the allowance can be excluded from the Regional Budget (APBD). "There is no regulation that states when you work and told to a have meeting with your superior, you will receive money? A governor would be rich if they receive money for every meeting," Ahok said.

Ahok said that DPRD members should be aware about their responsibilities, tasks and duties, and must attend every meeting even without allowance. "[They] have a hefty salary, cars, why are they not diligent? My salary is smaller, but I am diligent," Ahok said. The Governor also asks for the public's opinion about the properness of the allowance, and said that he will approve it if more than 50 percent of the people in Jakarta agree, and if there is a regulation that contains provisions on the allowance.

GHOIDA RAHMAH