‘Development funds for Papua among the highest’

The Jakarta Post, N | Thu, 07/29/2010 11:00 PM

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called on Thursday for an audit of the disbursement of the state budget for the development of Papua island, saying that the achievement of the development on the island was far from satisfying.

“I think it would be important for us to conduct an audit on the special autonomy region development fund of Papua. I have received many letters, even accusing of our [Jakarta] carelessness for, among others, the lack of Papua’s development fund,” he said at the Presidential Palace on Thursday.

The President said that the progress of the two provinces in Papua should be far better than what were seen today because the government’s spending for the development in the two provinces were among the highest in the country.

Among the country’s 33 provinces, he said, Papua and West Papua provinces have the largest per capita development spending. “If there is no improvement there, then we have to know, why?” he said.

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