Efforts to Improve Transparency in Business Licensing Services in Aceh
BANDA ACEH, INDONESIA - Integrated One-Stop Services (PTSP) at the provincial and district/city levels in Aceh, Indonesia should serve as a barometer for transparency in public services. This great potential can be seen from the monitoring indicators of the Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) Monitoring Center for Prevention (MCP) program.
The Head of Aceh's Investment and Integrated One-Stop Service Agency (DPMPTSP), Marthunis stated the matter at the opening of the Integrated One-Stop Service Forum (FPTSP) event at the DPMPTSP Aceh office in Banda Aceh, on Wednesday, September 12th.
"The licensing service indicator values are much better compared to the other six MCP intervention areas, both at the provincial and district/city PTSP,” he said.
The former Acting Regent of Aceh Singkil Regency explained that MCP intervention areas are implementations of corruption risk mitigation through monitoring improvements across seven areas prone to corruption and one area of institutional strengthening. The seven MCP areas include planning and budgeting, procurement of goods/services, licensing, government internal oversight, civil service management, local tax optimization and regional asset management.
“The goal of MCP is to encourage local governments to transform values in order to realize good governance. What has been achieved by PTSP in Aceh and districts/cities must be maintained and further improved by preparing licensing service data and documents to be verified by the KPK,” he emphasized.
Meanwhile, the Verifier for the Licensing Area of Aceh from the Ministry of Home Affairs, Halomoan Pakpahan, agreed with the Head of DPMPTSP Aceh. The licensing area does have the potential to become a barometer for transparency in public services. The licensing convenience value at DPMPTSP Aceh has reached 100%, he confirmed.
Looking at the achievement scores of district/city PTSP, it appears that six districts/cities are already in the green zone with values of 79.25% - 95.96%, eleven districts/cities are in the blue zone with values of 50.06% - 74.84%, and five districts/cities are still in the yellow zone with values of 26.42% - 44.75%. The only district in the red zone is Langsa City, with an MCP value of just 19.52%, he elaborated.
Halomoan advised districts/cities that are still in the red and yellow zones to be more serious about completing the data needed for the eight KPK intervention areas. Supporting data on transparency and accountability, infrastructure, licensing convenience, and control and supervision must be well documented. Special attention should be given to Langsa City to immediately improve its MCP score and leave the KPK's red zone, he urged.
"Districts/cities in the blue zone just need to complete the lacking required data so that the next verification results will move them to the green zone," Halomoan suggested.
Prone Areas
The Head of Licensing Service Sector A - DPMPTSP Aceh, Mustafa, ST, M.Si explained that there are regulatory loopholes that have the potential for extortion. Permits for water resource utilization are required to have feasibility studies, operation and maintenance plans, and technology used, but there are no standard formats and costs in the Regulation of the Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Number 6 of 2021, he explained.
Similarly, the issuance of Fishing Permits (SIPI) and Fishing Vessel Permits (SIKPI) lack definitive standards regarding payments or fees that must be paid by ship owners for these sailing documents. "This condition is prone to extortion which burdens fishing businesses," Mustafa said.
Meanwhile, the Head of Licensing Sector B - DPMPTSP Aceh, Marzuki, SH said that long bureaucratic processes also stimulate extortion or corruption. Businesses want everything fast and are willing to pay extra for it. Moreover, businesses tend to want to visit directly with service-providing officials, which creates opportunities for bribery, he explained. According to Marzuki, the temptation for bribery can be avoided with digital licensing services, such as Online Single Submission.
In line with Marzuki, the Head of Licensing Sector C, Feriyana, SH, M.Hum also explained the risk of extortion from direct interactions between businesses and licensing officials. Digitalization of licensing is the solution. But the challenge is that many businesses are not yet tech-savvy and need to be provided with easy-to-follow education on using digital systems, she suggested.
MCP Comittee
Previously, the Chair of the PTSP Forum Committee from DPMPTSP Aceh, Junita, ST reported that they had specifically invited MCP verifiers for the licensing intervention area from the Ministry of Home Affairs. This allowed PTSP Forum participants, who are also Heads of DPMPTSP districts/cities, to get direct education from authorized officials on improving their MCP indicator scores.
In addition, Junita said her team also asked Heads of Licensing and Non-Licensing Service from all sectors to present prone points for extortion practices and potential corruption in their respective Fields.
“Prevention of corruption and extortion is easier if you know the vulnerable points and make prevention strategies,” she concluded.
Overall, authorities in Aceh seem committed to increasing transparency in business licensing by digitizing services, completing verification data, and addressing loopholes. But continued vigilance and improvement will be needed, especially in districts still scoring poorly. Comprehensive monitoring and verification from central agencies combined with a sincere desire for reform among local leaders will be key.
