Jakarta (Antara) - Lawmaker Supiadin has urged the government to stop accepting grants for the primary weaponry defense system (Alutsista) of the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI).
The statement was made following the crash of the Indonesian Air Force's Hercules C-130 airplane that killed more than 140 people in Medan, North Sumatra, Tuesday (June 30).
"The Hercules plane crash in Medan is a clear warning for the government to stop receiving grants for the military's Alutsista," he said here on Wednesday.
Some of the TNI's old Hercules planes are from Australia, he added.
In April 2015, an F-16 fighter jet, which was a grant from the United States, had caught fire at the Halim Perdanakusumah Airbase after it failed to takeoff.
"At that time, Indonesia had agreed to receive 24 planes from the United States. However, when five of them arrived, only two were categorized as serviceable and fit for operation," Supiadin pointed out.
Supiadin, a member of Commission I of the House of Representatives, also urged the government to modernize the Alutsista.
"Indonesia should learn from its past experiences. It should use funds allocated in the state budget to modernize the Alutsista and not accept grants from other countries," he stated.
A Hercules C-130 transport aircraft of the Indonesian Air Force crashed in Jamin Ginting Road in Medan, the capital city of North Sumatra province, on Tuesday at 12:10 p.m. local time, killing at least 134 people.
The site of the crash is widely known as one of the busiest roads that connects Medan and Brastagi tourist resort.
The transport aircraft, bearing the registration number A-1310, crashed shortly after takeoff from Polonia Airbase during its flight from Medan to Natuna Island.
The ill-fated aircraft was carrying supplies from Halim Perdanakusuma Airbase in Jakarta to several others, such as Pekanbaru, Medan, Tanjung Pinang, Ranai (Natuna Island), and Pontianak. (*)
