Retired officials still relish pay day

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 03/13/2009 2:53 PM  |  City

Dozens of elderly people waited patiently in wooden chairs at a bank branch on Jl. Gunung Sahari Raya, Central Jakarta.

Once the electronic board showed their queue number, they made their way one by one to one of the four bank counters, where tellers checked their identity cards and bank statements, before handing over an envelope containing their monthly pension funds.

While waiting for their turn, most of the elderly bank customers eased their boredom by chatting with other pensioners, the infotainment program on the television failing to attract their attention.

Spending one or two hours in a queue may be tedious for many busy Jakartans, but not for Edi. The 67-year-old said coming to pick up his pension fund was something he really looked forward to.

When his queue number appeared, he smiled and walked over to the teller.

"When I come here, I'm not just picking up my *pension* money. Sometimes, I can meet my old friends and have a long chat with them," Edi, a retired official of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), told The Jakarta Post.

Edi said he rarely met his old colleagues since he retired in 1998, spending most of his time at home with his wife because his two grown up children no longer lived with them.

Early in the morning, Edi leaves his house in Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta, to go to his bank branch by public transport.

"For the last 10 years, this has been one of my favorite routines," he said.

Every first week of the month, millions of retired government and army officials visit branches of state-owned Bank Tabungan Pensiunan Nasional (BTPN) and post offices all over the country to withdraw their pension funds.

The headquarter branch of BTPN on Jl. Gunung Sahari Raya serves more than 500 retirees a day during the first five or six workdays of the month. During that period, the bank opens eight counters in its two halls, to cater for the large amount of withdrawals.

Although retired officials are able to withdraw their pension funds at anytime of the month, most of them choose to do so earlier rather than later.

Ismail, a retired Jakarta government official, said he chose to visit the bank on the third or fourth day of the month.

"It's less crowded compared to the first two days *of the month*," said the 68-year-old.

Hoping the elderly will spend some of their cash immediately, street vendors and product marketers flood street lanes near the bank's main entrance during the first week of the month, offering goods such as home utensils, clothes, fruits and pastries.

Udin, a fruit seller, said although he usually sold his fruits in a school beside BTPN headquarters, he moved in front of the bank's main entrance to attract elderly buyers.

"I can get almost Rp 100,000 (US$8.30) per day here, which is double my usual sales," said Udin, a commuter from Bogor, West Java, to Central Jakarta.

"After withdrawing their pension funds, elderly people like buying something for their families at home."

Udin, however, said that he and other vendors could only stay near the bank's entrance for a maximum of a week, because officers from the city public order agency would ask them to leave.

"We used to be able to sell anything we liked in the first two weeks of the month, but now the city's public order officers force us to leave the place after four days," he said.

Some companies also advertise their products directly to the elderly on bank premises.

Deva, a marketing executive promoting a telephone service at the bank, said selling products to the elderly was a challenging job.

"We ask retirees for five or 10 minutes of their time to listen to our special offers. If they like our product, they can buy it later," Deva told the Post.

Parwoto, a security officer at the bank, said the bank had tried to stop vendors from setting up stalls near the bank's gates but they kept coming back.

"It is a matter of safety. It is hard for us to ensure that our elderly customers leave the bank safely if there are too many people around them," Parwoto told the Post.

"That's why it is important our elderly customers ask for someone to accompany them to the bank," he added. (hwa)

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