Wahono's parting words<\/p>\n
As many of us came to expect, some valuable pieces of advice
\nwere there to be found by those who were willing to listen to the
\naddress delivered by House of Representatives Speaker Wahono
\nbefore the legislature's final plenary session on Friday before
\nit is disbanded to make room for a newly elected group.<\/p>\n
Although the House has in the past five years performed its
\nmain tasks satisfactorily, the need for improvement continues to
\nexist, especially to further elevate the House's function as a
\nforum for people's representation, Wahono said. Communication and
\ninteraction between people and their representatives must be
\nimproved so that people will truly feel represented by elected
\nlegislators who are capable of conveying their aspirations.<\/p>\n
The events of the past few years, according to Wahono, should
\nserve to remind us of the importance of developing political
\ninstitutions that are capable of serving people's aspirations. By
\nremaining committed to bringing about an orderly and gradual
\nrenewal of this country's political management and mechanism,
\nradical methods in airing views in public and pursuing group
\ninterests could be reduced to a minimum, Wahono said.<\/p>\n
Although addressed to members of the outgoing legislature, it
\nwas difficult to dismiss the impression that Wahono's remarks
\nmade during the House's closing plenary session on Friday were
\naimed more at the new House of Representatives, whose members are
\nto be formally installed on Oct. 1, than at the present
\nlegislature.<\/p>\n
As many observers have pointed out, the new legislative body
\nwill, together with the executive branch of government, bear the
\nimmense responsibility of guiding this nation through a crucial
\nperiod in history. Not only will the next decade be marked by the
\nprospect of a new generation of leaders taking over in all
\nsectors of life, the nation will face the challenge of having to
\nlive in a complex new world and age in which national boundaries
\noffer little protection against assertive foreign influences and
\ninterests -- a fact which we are even now being constantly
\nreminded of.<\/p>\n
The question is whether the new legislature will be up to the
\nchallenges that lie ahead. Our hope, naturally, is that it will
\nbe. But it is hard to deny the urgency of addressing the needs
\nthat House Speaker Wahono pointed out in his address last week.
\nTrue, the House has done reasonably well handling many of its
\ntasks, including the passing of 73 new laws to replace old ones
\nthat were felt to be obsolete.<\/p>\n
Still, as far as the public is concerned, a good deal more
\nneeds to be done -- empowerment of the House being among the most
\nimportant. The fact that dissatisfied citizens have tended to
\nbring their grievances to the National Commission on Human
\nRights, rather than to the House of Representatives, should serve
\nas a signal to our legislators that public trust in our national
\nlegislature is still somewhat lacking.<\/p>\n
The growing tendency in the past couple of years for people to
\nvent their anger through violence -- often directed toward the
\ngovernment or state facilities -- is but another small indication
\nthat the workings of our channels of expression and communication
\nleave much to be desired.<\/p>\n
Certainly we all agree with House Speaker Wahono that radical
\nmethods of airing public views must be minimized. As Wahono said
\nin an address late last month, a change in our political culture
\nis necessary if the House is to properly perform its duties as
\npeople's representatives. House Speaker Wahono's latest remarks
\nmore than deserve to be taken to heart.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/wahonos-parting-words-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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