Tanjungpinang  / Mataram ~

The government will evaluate its policy banning all government officials from holding meetings and conferences in hotels in response to complaints from hotel owners, Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said.

“We will coordinate with the State Administrative Reforms Ministry to address the issue. Hopefully, we will find the way out,” he said while paying a working visit in the Riau Islands provincial capital of Tanjungpinang on Thursday.

He said the Tourism Ministry had accommodated aspirations from hotel and restaurant owners. The aspirations would be conveyed to the State Administrative Reforms Ministry for consideration. “We must find a proper solution to the issue,” he said.

Some hotel owners in Tanjungpinang had reduced their employees after they saw a decline in their income as a result of the policy banning government officials from holding meetings and conferences in hotels, chief of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) of Tanjungpinang chapter Alexander Ang said.

“Due to a shortfall in hotel income, many hotel owners did not extend work contracts with their employees,” he said.

Meanwhile according to Minister Of Administrative Reform Yuddy Chrisnandi, the government has saved as much as Rp5.122 trillion so far by limiting the number of meetings being held in hotels.

“We have been able to save Rp5.122 trillion so far, which could be used to finance more prioritized programs,” he stated during a working visit to the office of the Mataram city administration.

The minister pointed out that by imposing the policy, the government had only wished for public services to not be extravagant.

“We always thought we could use the budget without considering whether what we did would benefit the community,” Chrisnandi remarked.

Every rupiah that comes from the public, he emphasized, must be managed well, and by taking that into consideration, the government imposed limitations with regard to meetings that may be held in hotels.

In fact, the government did not ban regional governments from holding meetings in hotels, Chrisnandi explained, as long as the hotels were government-run and the meetings involved a third party.

“Regional governments may hold events like seminars, symposiums, or policy familiarization meetings in hotels,” he affirmed.

Moreover, if the familiarization event involves a third party-for example, if it is regarding an investment policy and invites investors-they may go ahead and hold it in a hotel, he said.

“It would be better if such activities in a hotel are concluded within a week and most funds are contributed by the third party. However, efficiency is the important factor to bear in mind,” the minister remarked.

Chrisnandi further noted that the ban on holding meetings in hotels was primarily aimed at optimizing the use of government facilities.