Economic rescue<\/p>\n
From Kompas<\/p>\n
Regarding the Declaration on the Rescue of Indonesia's
\nEconomy, reported in Kompas of Aug. 6, as a fellow economist of
\nthose making the declaration, I am of the opinion that the
\ndeclaration is quite proper in that the substance of the
\ndeclaration has been expressed in public by the economists making
\nthe declaration and some other economists who miss being invited
\nto join the drafting and launching of the declaration, such as
\nDibyo Prabowo, Kwik Kian Gie, Tulus Tambunan and myself. This
\ndeclaration voices a clear conscience. The majority of economists
\nmust agree to the substance of the declaration. I am convinced
\nthat this declaration will prompt the government and the House of
\nRepresentatives (DPR) to focus their attention to the present and
\nthe future.<\/p>\n
Calls telling people of a sense of crisis have often been
\nheard, but unfortunately they are still responded to with an
\nattitude characterized by relaxation, belittlement and a lack of
\nseriousness. A sense of crisis means an awareness of an imminent
\ndanger of total failure and a realization that one must, firmly
\nand without delay, take action to prevent our nation from going
\nbankrupt. (\"Crisis\" is rendered in Japanese as Ki-Ki, the first
\nKi meaning danger and the second an opportunity to take action in
\norder to resist and dispel the danger.)<\/p>\n
As a fellow economist, I take pride in the launching of the
\ndeclaration, but at the same time I cannot help feeling worried
\nand sad. Why should I feel worried and sad while we still have
\nour moral force. First, one of our ministers that I greatly
\nrespect was defensive about the declaration, instead of
\nappreciating it, and has even marginalized the value of the
\ndeclaration. Second, why hasn't the initiative to launch this
\nkind of declaration been taken by economists serving as
\nlegislators at the DPR (there are quite a few of them)? Are our
\neconomists serving as legislators too busy for this matter? One
\nmay always take a populist stance but must always bear in mind
\nthat the macroeconomics principles must never be abandoned.<\/p>\n
We are all hard pressed for time. Our awareness of the urgency
\nof things is not just lip service. The government, the DPR and
\nobservers (scholars and observers constitute a moral force) must
\nhave the courage to abandon decadence and be quick enough to
\nrelearn the attitude, behavior and credibility (ABC), something
\nwhich will not be just window dressing and marginal.<\/p>\n
BOB WIDYAHARTONO<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/economic-rescue-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }