Bank Indonesia's accountability

The amendment of Law No. 23/1999 on Bank Indonesia (BI) has been delayed for a couple of years, mainly due to the insistence of the bank's board of governors in rejecting the proposal by the Minister of Finance to set up a supervisory board that would oversee the performance of the central bank.

The Oct. 14 edition of The Jakarta Post quoted the finance minister as saying that it was important to set up a supervisory board in order to strike a balance between the central bank's independence and its accountability.

What stunned us was BI's response -- that the plan be postponed by at least five years. This means that the existing law, which almost makes the board of governors untouchable in regards their accountability, would be maintained for at least five years.

It is a pity that an independent and prestigious monetary institution like BI could not lead the country in being more accountable and transparent toward the public. Moreover, as this institution is now under the governorship of Burhanuddin Abdullah -- a person who worked at the IMF headquarters for many years -- he could have led the bank as a champion of good governance.

Keeping this mind, one may assume that BI's rejection of the finance minister's plan would end up in financial misappropriation, and that the country's program of eradicating corruption would go nowhere and may be postponed for at least five years -- if it ever begins at all.

M. RUSDI Jakarta