Officials' pay hike<\/p>\n
From Media Indonesia<\/p>\n
In connection with the plan to increase the salaries of
\ngovernment officials of the Republic of Indonesia by an average
\nof 200 percent to 300 percent, I herewith express my disapproval
\nand would like to suggest the following:<\/p>\n
1. The salary of the President and the Vice President need not be
\nraised because pursuant to Law No. 7\/1978, all their needs are
\nprovided for and borne by the government. Besides, the law
\nstipulates that the salary of the President is six times higher
\nthan that of a high-ranking official, while the Vice President's
\nsalary is four times higher than that of a high-ranking official.<\/p>\n
2. The salary of the chairman of a state's highest\/high
\ninstitution, a minister, deputy chairman of a state's
\nhighest\/high institution may be raised by a maximum of 50 percent
\nbecause they have been provided with a house and car and their
\ntelephone, electricity and water bills are borne by the
\ngovernment.<\/p>\n
3. The salary of a member of a state's high institution may be
\nraised by a maximum of 100 percent.<\/p>\n
4. As for civil servants, except those of echelon I, their
\nsalaries may be raised in accordance with the government's plan.<\/p>\n
Although the rupiah's purchasing power and value have dropped
\nby 200 percent compared with the condition prior to the onset of
\nthe monetary crisis, an excessive rise in the salaries of state
\nofficials, particularly in the case of the President and the Vice
\nPresident, is not proper at this time.<\/p>\n
We all know that owing to the crisis, the prices of
\ncommodities have risen by 100 percent to 200 percent while most
\ncommunity members, including major businesspeople and
\nprofessionals have undergone a drop of between 30 percent and 60
\npercent in their income.<\/p>\n
Please do not compare the salaries of state high-ranking
\nofficials with those of executive officers in state enterprises
\nand private companies because these executive officers must
\ngenerate money.<\/p>\n
Anywhere under the sun, the position of a state high-ranking
\nofficial is always an honor\/mandate. Therefore, U.S. vice
\npresident George Bush was willing to abandon his job as an
\nexecutive officer in a particular company with a salary of US$1
\nmillion a year in order to take up the position of the vice
\npresident with a salary of not more than $150,000 a year.<\/p>\n
It must be added that the facilities that a chief executive
\nofficer (CEO) receives are not worse than those that a president
\nenjoys, such as a special aircraft, an bullet-proof automobile, a
\nhouse and other benefits. The only difference is that anywhere in
\nthe world the respect that the community pays to the most
\nsuccessful CEO will not be as great as the respect that they
\naccord to a good head of state\/head of government.<\/p>\n
A number of former U.S. ministers were willing to abandon
\ntheir executive positions in large companies with salaries of up
\nto $2 million a year just to take up a ministerial post, from
\nwhich they earned only $60,000 a year.<\/p>\n
Therefore, it is proper that state officials also experience
\nthe lower living standard of the majority of Indonesians.
\nFinally, if corruption is given as the pretext for the salary
\nhike, we must be aware that many government officials during the
\nOld Order period and at the beginning of the New Order era were
\nnot involved in corruption despite their meager salaries.<\/p>\n
HM RIDHWAN INDRA RA<\/p>\n
Bekasi, West Java<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/officials-pay-hike-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }