"Let`s create a public service in the Ministry of Transportation, which is free from irregularity practices or illegal levies," the minister said.Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi asked his officials to remove the enrich-oneself mentality, so that they could provide services to the public, which are free from deviations such as illegal levies.
"Lets create a public service in the Ministry of Transportation, which is free from irregularity practices or illegal levies," Budi said at the Ministry of Transportation here on Monday.
Meanwhile, Director General of Sea Transportation A Tonny Budiono instructed all his officials to work together to eradicate illegal fees without exception and to restore public trust, justice and legal certainty.
"I hope all ranks and files of sea transportation are committed to providing the best services to the entire users of the sea transportation service, with full responsibility, honesty, transparency and guided by the principles of good governance," he said.
Extortion has become a crucial issue amid the governments efforts to achieve good governance. President Joko Widodo gave spotlight to this issue recently.
The impact of illegal levies on development and public services has become so serious that the government is taking a quick step. Widodo has also signed a presidential regulation as a legal umbrella for the establishment of an illegal levies eradication team called Saber Pungli.
The regulation is the Presidential Regulation No. 87 Year of 2016 on Illegal Levies Eradication Task Force.
Widodo has reminded ministries that illegal levies eradication movement should be first started from within their own institutions.
Presidential Regulation No. 87 Year of 2016 is to regulate the formation of the Saber Pungli team in efforts to combat extortion in Indonesia.
In its operations, the Saber Pungli Team is led by the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security, the National Police, the Attorney General and the Ministry of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform. The team will work to eradicate the illegal levies both in the central and in the local governments.
The Ministry of Transportation, as an institution that serves the public transport sector, has followed the presidential regulation by establishing an Illegal Levies Eradication Task Force, which is tasked to conduct supervision in public services. The Illegal Levies Eradication Task Force is an ad hoc team led by the Secretary General of the Ministry, with representatives from the Ministry of Transportation, Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) and the Indonesian Consumers Institute Foundation (YLKI).
The team is expected to be more independent and clean. Hence, it will be able to contribute to the country, especially in the eradication of extortion in the Ministry of Transportation.
In performing its duties, the Transportation Ministrys Illegal Levies Eradication Task Force will carry out supervision steps to improve the contact center services, cut officials bureaucracies and take civil servants who are found taking illegal levies to the law enforcement agencies.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2016
