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Oloan Siregar appointed interim mayor for South Jakarta
Fri, 09/05/2008 11:28 AM | City
The city administration has appointed Mara Oloan Siregar as interim mayor for South Jakarta municipality following the arrest of Budiman Simarmata, the former South Jakarta municipal secretary.
Governor Fauzi Bowo said Mara Oloan would stay in the position until South Jakarta Mayor Syahrul Effendi completed his education at the National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas) in December.
"A functional position in a municipality cannot remain vacant. The appointment is essential and should be carried out as soon as possible," Fauzi added.
Mara Oloan Siregar currently serves as assistant to the city secretary for the economy.
Mara Oloan is the most appropriate person to replace Budiman because he already has leadership experience, serving as regent of the Thousand Islands regency, Fauzi said.
Mara Oloan said he was ready to take on the task handed to him by the governor.
Budiman Simarmata, the former municipal secretary, and Ishak Firdaus, former subdistrict head of North Kebayoran Lama, were brought to the Cipinang Penitentiary in East Jakarta on Wednesday.
Budiman and Ishak allegedly cost the state nearly Rp 4 billion (US$439,560) in losses due to their 2006 involvement in a forgery involving a plot of land to be used as a Buddhist grave in the Tanah Kusir public cemetery in South Jakarta.
Besides Budiman and Ishak, a number of civil servants in the city administration have been interrogated by police or members of the Corruption Eradication Commission, including in the most recent such case, involving alleged graft at the basic education agency.
The corruption investigation has aroused fear among working units heads, with many reluctant to disburse funds, causing a 17.3 percent decrease in spending as of June.
Fauzi said he had encouraged all working unit and project heads to continue spending budget funds properly to complete required projects.
"They don't have to worry about making a mistake or being caught as long as they use the budget properly and in accordance with regulations," the governor added.
To avoid similar investigations, Fauzi requested city secretary Muhayat assist working unit heads with their duties. - JP/Tifa Asrianti
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