"The rupiah weakening has resulted in a surge in the prices of building materials by more than 21 percent," LPJKN chief Tri Widjajanto said in a written statement issued here on Saturday.
Rupiah value has dropped sharpy against the US dollar from the level of 9,000 to more than 11,000 per dollar over the past several months .
Tri Widjajanto said the increase has been recorded in the prices of building materials but also in other sector notably in transport cost.
He said the construction sector has sustained a third hit after the increase in labor cost and oil fuel price hikes.
"We could still stand the impact of the hikes in labor and fuel costs but it would be too much to withstand with the rupiah falling value," he said.
Therefore, he appealed to the government to approve adjustment in the prices of contracts for government projects.
LPKJN wanted delays in the implementation schedules for a number of contracts unless price readjustments are not acceptable.
Construction service companies also wanted the government to issue a policy that would facilitate procurement of construction materials and cut in import taxes, Tri said .
He said construction companies have only low profit margin but they contributes significantly or 12 percent to the country's GDP and provides 6 million jobs.
Earlier deputy chairman of the Commission XI of the House of Representatives Harry Azhar Azis blamed the government partly for the rupiah fall.
The government had been slow in carrying out four economic safety packages resulting in rupiah fall, Harry said in Batam on Friday, citing the delay in signing the government regulation that rules a 150 percent increase in the import duties on luxury cars. (*/DWA)
: Dewa Sudiarta Wiguna
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