Life gets slower for civil servants<\/p>\n
M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Bendungan Hilir subdistrict office was half-empty on Friday,
\ntwo days before the Idul Fitri holiday.<\/p>\n
Of the office's 15 staff members, only seven were at work,
\nwhile the other eight had already gone on holiday. Those who were
\nat work walked aimlessly around the office or sat without
\naverting their gaze from an old Indian movie on television.<\/p>\n
\"Pak Lurah (subdistrict head) left after Friday prayers to
\nvisit a relative, and the guy who collects electricity bills
\nclosed his counter before prayers,\" said Syarifuddin, one of a
\nfew employees who opted to stay at the office, apparently to
\navoid the midday sun.<\/p>\n
The Minister of Religious Affairs, Minister of Manpower and
\nTransmigration and State Minister for Administrative Reform had
\nissued a joint decree declaring the Idul Fitri holiday would fall
\non Nov. 14 and 16, and recommending an extension of the holiday
\nto include Nov. 17 and Nov. 19.<\/p>\n
The policy was introduced in the wake of the Oct. 12, 2002
\nBali bombings with the aim of rejuvenating the tourist industry.<\/p>\n
The move was also aimed at encouraging civil servants, who
\noften skip work on the days before and after holidays, to change
\ntheir behavior.<\/p>\n
Pleased with its effectiveness, the government maintained the
\npolicy until the current holiday season.<\/p>\n
In reality, the expected result was anything but what the
\ngovernment had wanted, as life gets slower for public servants
\nbefore and after the designated holiday period.<\/p>\n
Syarifuddin defended his colleagues' early leave by saying
\nthat there was not much they could do at work. \"There were less
\nand less people coming to our office to get ID cards,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Similar conditions were observed at the Tanah Abang tax
\ncollection office in Central Jakarta, where only a handful of
\nstaff members were receiving payments from taxpayers.<\/p>\n
Only one employee was on standby in the registration booth.<\/p>\n
An employee said that a large number of employees had taken
\nleave for the Idul Fitri holiday. \"The remaining personnel are
\nthose who works in shifts,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The same scenario will likely occur in the first few days
\nafter the holiday.<\/p>\n
\"Although the government decreed that the extended holiday
\nwould last until Nov. 20, I believe that the bureaucracy will
\nfunction as usual in early December,\" said Bambang Haryadi, head
\nof West Jakarta municipality's civil service department.<\/p>\n
He said that, although public servants would register their
\nattendance on the designated date, they would, according to
\ncustom, take time out to meet their colleagues to ask for
\nforgiveness.<\/p>\n
\"The 'forgiveness exchange' will probably last for a week.
\nJudging from past experiences, things will be slow after the
\nholiday,\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/life-gets-slower-for-civil-servants-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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