The South Tapanuli regency administration will continue a number of development programs involving forest conversion despite stern criticism from NGOs over environmental concerns.

NGOs have accused the North Sumarta administration of violating the law on protected forests by developing a 100 kilometer road that cuts through protected forest land in Barumun.

"We have stopped the road project although it is actually aimed at increasing the prosperity of people in isolated areas," South Tapanuli Regent Ongku P. Hasibuan said during a visit to The Jakarta Post recently.

Hasibuan said the road had only gone 2.47 kilometers into the forest. "So we ended the project (there)."

He said although the road project had been suspended, it had contributed to the economy in isolated areas by speeding up the distribution of agricultural produce, such as vegetables.

He said farmers in isolated areas no longer needed to walk for hours through the forest area as they could now use motorcycles to transport their products part of the distance to markets in the regency.

The 4,502-square-kilometer regency consists of 12 districts with a total population of 258,580. About 80 percent of the area is forest.

Hasibuan, who was nominated by the Islamic-based Prosperous Justice Party in the first direct election in 2005, urged the central government to allow the regency's administration to manage the forests.

"Only people in the regency know about the problems involving the forests. The central government would not be able to monitor whether there was a violation or not," said the former chief executive officer of Alsthom Indonesia, a subsidiary of the U.S. Halliburton Group.

He said all forests in Indonesia were managed by the Forestry Ministry, but added that the ministry did not have enough officers to monitor the woodlands.

"Don't blame the regency administration for forest damage since we don't have the authority to manage it. If we had the authority we would manage it well," said the native South Tapanuli, adding that his administration would reduce illegal logging if it were so authorized.

He said many in the regency were reluctant to buy timber to build houses for fear of breaking the law.

"Should we substitute wood for steel?"

However, Hasibuan, who was taking part in a leadership development program held by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said the forest conversion issue would not halt the administration's other projects.

The electronic engineering graduate from the Bandung Institute of Technology said his administration had launched several programs, including the development of village infrastructure and the establishment of vocational schools and community health centers.

He said the administration gave assistance to farmers for them to apply for land certificates.

"The farmers can then secure loans to build processing facilities for their agriculture products."

He said his administration would also develop tourism destinations, including Siais Lake, the second-largest lake in North Sumatra after the popular Toba Lake.

"The lake has been forgotten for a long time. Although it won't be easy, we will repair the infrastructure step by step," Hasibuan said in his speech officiating the North Sumatra Boyscouts Camp three years ago as quoted on the regency's official website www.tapselkab.go.id.

When asked whether he regretted his choice to resign from his high-paying executive post to run for regent, Hasibuan said: "I was considered weird. My salary as regent is far lower than as a CEO, but I just want to better my region."

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