November 4, 2014 edition
SETYA knows when he needs to serve the powerful, when to lobby, to make friends, to appease his political foes or to share his gain with others. He is a prototype of today's politicians, when politics means a way of getting to the top, not a way to serve the people.
Setya, 59, left his hometown of Bandung to become a businessman but eventually ended up in politics. He is said to own no fewer than 14 companiesfrom real estate to cafeterias. In 2009, his recorded financial assets totaled Rp73.79 billion and US$17,781more than double the figure for the previous year.
Read More
More Opinion articles in other editions
January 1, 1970 edition
MICRO loans (KUR) are a noble initiative. The program helps farmers and small businesses who find it difficult to qualify for regular bank loans. Unfortunately the KUR program is hamstrung by irregularities that have resulted in non-performing loans.
The KUR program seems to have lost its initial enthusiasm when President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono launched it in 2007. The program, run by Asuransi Kredit Indonesia (Askrindo)a state-owned microcredit insurance company now on the brink of collapsehas paid out Rp160 trillion in various forms of assistance. But the program has only reached 9 million people, less than 5 percent of Indonesia's population.
Read More
January 1, 1970 edition
THE Financial Services Authority (FSA) is to be commended for limiting credit interest rates. The FSA's policy should have brought down interest rates and as such, the banks' interest rates would go back to being a conducive factor for business and the national economy.
Interest rates today only benefit the 'money raisers' who deposit their money at banks. As a result, there is no incentive for those with money to invest in the real sector. Moreover, the interest rates have reached dangerous levels by exceeding the lending rate of 7.75 percent set by the Savings Guarantee Board (LPS).
Read More
January 1, 1970 edition
LEONARDUS Benjamin (Benny) Moerdani was a chapter in the history of modern Indonesia. He appeared at the beginning of the 'times of change', in an era the Republic's founder was preparing to step down and be replaced-not without injury-by a regime that would govern Indonesia for more than three decades.
No discussion on what became known as the New Order would be complete without a mention of Benny Moerdani. His name emerged when diplomatic relations with Malaysia were being restored, along with other figures such as Ali Moertopo and Des Alwi. Diplomatic ties with Malaysia had been severed dramatically with the proclamation of the 'People's Two Commands' (Dwikora) by President Sukarno in 1963. Sukarno viewed 'Malaysia' as a project of 'Imperialist Britain', and therefore it had to be 'crushed'.
Read More
January 1, 1970 edition
THERE is an unhealthy rivalry between the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the National Police (Polri). In recent years, there have been many clashes between the two law and order enforcers. The shooting of four TNI members during the search of an illegal fuel storage facility in Batam last Sunday added to the long list of TNI-Polri battles.
The leaders of both institutions have provided their own accounts, but something seems to be being kept under wraps during explanation time. The two organizations should work together to find the root cause, instead of rushing to defend their personnel.
Read More
September 23, 2014 edition
AS soon as he takes charge of the new government, president-elect Joko Widodo will have little choice but to reduce spending. One way would be to cut back the huge budget for official travel. Such an endeavor would not only salvage state funds, it might just reform the bureaucracy.
Total spending on official travel by the central government has been allocated at Rp35 trillion. This figure, which is included in the proposed 2015 State Budget, is around 30 percent higher than that of the previous year. It includes Rp11 trillion for meetings out of town, but excludes the Rp38 trillion allocated for overseas travel.
Read More
September 16, 2014 edition