Business and government must work together

A few days ago, scores of major private business leaders were invited to meet with the President, and a number of aspects of the meeting deserve to be underlined.

The current fall in the rupiah's value has brought dire consequences for all Indonesians. The poor are finding that their life's burdens are becoming heavier because the high prices of essential goods. A call is made on businesspeople to actively help in finding a solution. In the current climate of crisis, the task of working harder towards such a solution belongs not only to the government. The same responsibility also lies on the shoulders of the community as a whole, big business entrepreneurs in particular. Their sense of patriotism is now being questioned and at the same time appealed to. This was the essence of the meeting.

A more conducive situation would lure back old investors who have fled abroad and attract new ones. Naturally, aside from the efforts that are now being coordinated by the President, other measures are still needed and will continue to be taken.

Unhealthy banks, for instance, must be reconditioned. The existence of monopolies should not be continued because they hinder honest competition, and without competition, there will be no cheap, quality goods. It is difficult to conceive that such joint efforts will remain unsuccessful. We must hope and wait for the results to show while giving our support to those effort.

-- Republika, Jakarta