Autonomy program to go ahead<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government plans to go ahead and give
\ngreater autonomy to 26 regencies next week despite objections
\nfrom two government ministries.<\/p>\n
State Minister of Administrative Reform T.B. Silalahi said
\nyesterday that the central government's pilot project will hand
\nover more tasks and responsibilities to the regencies and will be
\nlaunched by President Soeharto on April 17.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Information and the Ministry of Religious
\nAffairs are the only two government agencies still opposed to
\nhanding over their affairs to local governments.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Education and Culture dropped its objection at
\nthe last minute after securing assurances from the Ministry of
\nHome Affairs, which oversees the regencies.<\/p>\n
Under the plan, each of the 24 agencies representing the
\ncentral government's ministries in the regencies will be put
\ndirectly under the command of their respective regency chiefs.
\nThey will no longer take their cue from the central government.<\/p>\n
Silalahi said that the ministries in Jakarta will retain some
\ncontrol over the direction of these offices, especially during
\nthe transition period.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Education and Culture was reluctant to hand
\nover the administration of the welfare and career of teachers on
\nits payroll.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Religious Affairs is still opposed to the
\nautonomy idea, which it fears may upset the harmonious
\ncoexistence of the country's religious groups, according to
\nearlier press reports.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Information is concerned that losing control
\nover the region might undermine its chief task of strengthening
\nthe people's sense of nationalism.<\/p>\n
Addressing these concerns, Silalahi expressed his belief that
\ngranting regional autonomy will strengthen national unity and not
\nlead to the disintegration of the nation.<\/p>\n
The regional autonomy plan, he argued, will encourage people
\nto participate in development programs, bring about more local
\ndevelopment and exploit the economic potential of the regions.
\n\"All of these will strengthen national unity,\" he added.<\/p>\n
On a separate occasion, the Ministry of Education and
\nCulture's Director General for Elementary and Secondary
\nEducation, Zainal Arifin Achmady, confirmed that the ministry has
\nalready reached a number of agreements with related ministries.<\/p>\n
\"Whether or not we have agreed to delegate certain
\nresponsibilities to local authorities is no longer the issue, he
\nsaid. \"What's important is that everybody understand the
\nsignificance of education.\"<\/p>\n
Silalahi said more talks are planned with the ministries of
\ninformation and religious affairs to address certain issues and
\nconcerns.<\/p>\n
To support the regional autonomy plan, the local legislative
\ncouncils must also strengthen their role in overseeing
\ndevelopment in their respective areas, he said.<\/p>\n
They must not let the regents become \"little kings\". The
\ncouncils must also be more cautious in electing their regents, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Silalahi met with a number of public figures and experts
\nyesterday to discuss the regional autonomy plan. Taking part in
\nthe meeting were Loekman Sutrisno, Afan Gaffar, Amin Rais, Sofyan
\nEffendi from Yogyakarta's Gadjah Mada University and Amir
\nSantoso, Bintan Saragih, and Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti from the
\nUniversity of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
The experts endorsed the plan, Silalahi said.<\/p>\n
The pilot project is the first clear effort to implement Law
\nNo.5\/1974, which requires the central government to hand over
\ngreater autonomy to the regions.<\/p>\n
It is not immediately clear how long the pilot project will
\nlast, but Silalahi said that if they prove successful, the idea
\nwill be applied to all regencies.<\/p>\n
President Soeharto was originally scheduled to inaugurate the
\nproject on April 3, but had to postpone the launch until after
\nhis return from an overseas trip to Germany and several Central
\nAsian states. (29\/pwn)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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