"As of today all residents of West Java, especially civil servants, must wear shoes made in Indonesia. Checks will be made and so do not try to wear foreign made shoes. If they do they will be asked to conduct a `push up` 200 times," the province`s governor, Ahmad Heryawan, said at the launching.
He said the campaign had actually been done for a long time but the launching was officially done only now.
The event was marked by the handing over of a pair of shoes from the chief of the Cibaduyut Community of Shoemakers, Guntur, to the governor which the governor immediately wore.
Cibaduyut in Bandung, West Java, has long been known as one of the shoe producing centers.
Governor Heryawan said "this program is reflection of the government`s support to domestic products. All civil servants in West Java will be checked if they have worn shoes made in Indonesia or not."
Heryawan said the increasing use of domestically made shoes would boost domestic economic development especially regional economic development.
"The quality of shoes made in Cibaduyut and several other shoe making centers is good and so why they should choose foreign made shoes," he said.
On the occasion governor Heryawan also asked shoe traders in the province to sell more domestically made products.
"Do not feel inferior selling domestically-made products while domestic manufacturers must not also be carried away using western sound trade marks. Use local trade marks," he said.
Heryawan said West Java has been known as shoe manufacturing centers in Malaysia, the Middle East and Africa.
Shoe and foot wear manufacturing centers could be found in Bandung, Tasikmalaya, Sukabumi, Bekasi, Cirebon and Bogor. (*)
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Editor: Jafar M Sidik
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
