Courses for would-be legislators defended<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government defended its plan yesterday to
\nprovide courses on state affairs and the state ideology Pancasila
\nto new members of the House of Representatives.<\/p>\n
The Agency for Pancasila Propagation's chief Alwi Dahlan said
\nit was wrong to think the courses were created because the
\ngovernment considered that future House members would be
\n"unqualified".<\/p>\n
"The course aims to help future legislators better understand
\ntheir jobs," he told a hearing of House Commission II for home
\naffairs.<\/p>\n
Alwi said the "public" and the parties had proposed the
\ncourses during the May election campaign.<\/p>\n
The courses will consist mostly of discussions among House
\nmembers on ways to improve the House of Representatives'
\nperformance.<\/p>\n
Instructors would give future House members ideas on ways to
\nimprove their performance but not teach them how to do their
\njobs, Alwi said.<\/p>\n
The 500-strong House has been sneered at as a rubber stamp
\ninstitution for its perceived submissive attitudes toward the
\nwill of the bureaucracy.<\/p>\n
The House will again be dominated by the government-backed
\nGolkar party with 325 seats for the next term from Oct. 1997 to
\n2002. The United Development Party won 89 seats and the
\nIndonesian Democratic Party 11 in the May 29 election.<\/p>\n
The Agency for Pancasila Propagation will handle the technical
\ndetails of the courses to be coordinated by State Minister of
\nSpecial Assignments Harmoko.<\/p>\n
Opinions were still mixed yesterday over the controversial
\nscheme.<\/p>\n
Golkar legislator A.A. Oka Mahendra said he thought the
\ncourses were unnecessary.<\/p>\n
"If the House performs as poorly as it is perceived now, would
\nthe agency be ready to share the consequences?" he asked the
\nhearing led by Golkar legislator Adolph Jouke Sondakh.<\/p>\n
Golkar member H. Hasanudin said he accepted and understood the
\ngovernment's decision to create the courses. Armed Forces
\nlegislator Hadi Sutrisno also accepted the government's decision.<\/p>\n
Alwi, a mass communication expert, denied the allegation that
\nthe government intended to make future House members more
\nsubmissive.<\/p>\n
He said President Soeharto had appointed the agency to help
\nhandle the courses because it was considered the most appropriate
\nbody to do so.<\/p>\n
A major goal of the courses would be to provide future House
\nmembers with the basic knowledge that they would need to
\nanticipate rapid changes in global politics, he said.<\/p>\n
The agency is working out the content and method of the
\ncourses. (01)<\/p>",
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