Powerless Council<\/p>\n
It began on a high note. When the third amendment was made to
\nthe 1945 Constitution, the bicameral political system was adopted
\nthrough the introduction of the Regional Representatives Council
\n(DPD) in addition to the House of Representatives. It was
\nimagined at that time that a system would be introduced similar
\nto the United States, where people are represented by the House
\nof Representatives and the Senate.<\/p>\n
In 2004, members of the House of Representatives were elected
\nand, for the first time, regional representatives were picked for
\nthe DPD. Unlike House members, DPD members are directly elected,
\nand many of them are not affiliated with any political party. So,
\nin theory, DPD members are closer to being actual representatives
\nof the people than House members.<\/p>\n
However, in its development, it was realized that our
\nbicameral system was far from perfect and that the DPD members
\nwere in truth toothless. Unlike the Senate in the United States,
\nthe DPD has no legislative power. Its only \"power\" is, together
\nwith the House, deliberating bills addressing regional issues,
\nand providing recommendations to the House on bills on state
\nbudgets, taxes, education and religion. Other than that, the DPD
\nhas no voice.<\/p>\n
The powerlessness of the DPD was most apparent when the House
\nflatly rejected the DPD's request to sit together with the House
\nto hear President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Aug. 16 state of the
\nnation address. Then, the DPD held on Tuesday its own plenary
\nmeeting, which President Susilo -- apparently in a consolatory
\ngesture -- also attended.<\/p>\n
For many people, the DPD meeting on Tuesday was meaningless,
\nother than its promotion of batik -- all DPD members and guests
\nwere wearing batik garments. But the meeting itself had no clear
\nagenda, nor direction. It is true that the DPD is required by the
\nConstitution to assemble in a meeting at least once a year.
\nHowever, what purpose does it serve to come together for a
\nplenary meeting just for the sake of meeting the constitutional
\nobligation, when there is no clear agenda or direction?<\/p>\n
So far, nothing has been heard from the DPD about its plans
\nfor next year, let alone the next five years. At the same time,
\npressing problems related to regional issues are on the rise.
\nWhere does the DPD stand and how will it act on issues related to
\nAceh, Papua, and most recently the uneven distribution of wealth
\nthat has resulted from the increasing revenue sharing of rich
\nregions as a consequence of soaring oil prices?<\/p>\n
If the DPD wants to use the momentum, it can wield its \"power\"
\nto help the government and the Acehnese make the Aceh peace
\nagreement work by facilitating the amendment of the Aceh special
\nautonomy law, in accordance with the agreement.<\/p>\n
Also, the DPD should run with Susilo's suggestions on revenue
\nsharing. Susilo called on oil- and gas-producing regions enjoying
\nwindfall revenue from soaring oil prices to share their wealth
\nfor the development of public services in poor regions. It is
\nlikely that no rich region will heed the President's call.
\nTherefore, the best way to address this problem is to distribute
\nthe central government's block grants -- the General Allocation
\nFund (DAU) -- only to regions that are not benefiting from
\nrevenue sharing from oil and gas. So far, all regions, including
\nthose oil and gas producing regions, receive the block grants,
\nalthough their portion might be smaller than the poorer regions.
\nHere, the DPD can take a position, and play a role, if it wishes,
\nby making recommendations to the House regarding the allocation
\nof the block grants in the 2006 state budget.<\/p>\n
Thus, if its recommendations to the House are not taken up,
\nthe turndown should be made public. That way, the DPD could win
\npopular support for its ultimate goal: the fifth amendment of the
\nConstitution, to empower the DPD. It is advisable for the DPD to
\nwork toward the constitutional amendment. Otherwise, the DPD will
\nremain powerless and useless. However, going it alone would also
\nbe fruitless as the DPD -- with 128 members -- is just too small
\nto initiate any amendment. Therefore, the people are waiting for
\nthe DPD to show that it is deserving of support.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/powerless-council-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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