'DPD must start to work to win heart of the people'

'DPD must start to work to win heart of the people'

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The establishment of the directly-elected Regional
Representatives Council (DPD) has raised people's hopes for a
better legislature. The presence of the DPD, along with the House
of Representatives, is hoped to create better checks and
balances. However, with the limited power given to the DPD, the
public doubts that the DPD will perform an important role. The
Jakarta Post's Kurniawan Hari recently spoke with DPD Deputy
Speaker Irman Gusman about the role and function of DPD. Here is
the excerpt:

Question: As deputy speaker of the DPD, how will you optimize
the role of this new legislative body?

Answer: In accordance with the Constitution, the duty of the
DPD encompasses the legislation of certain issues, which include
regional autonomy, establishment of autonomous regions, and
natural resources, among other things.

However, most importantly is that as regional representatives,
we must struggle for the aspirations of the people in the
regions. Therefore, we try to communicate intensively with the
central government and the House of Representatives to voice
those aspirations.

As we all know, the authority of the DPD is only to submit
proposals and to give input to the House. But, it depends on the
DPD members how they maximize this function.

During the election of the People's Consultative Assembly, we
were able to show the public that the DPD and the House are
equal. The number of voters in the election of DPD members and
House members is the same. In fact, the DPD members are directly
elected by the people, not through political parties.

Constitutional reform has given birth to the DPD as a
legislative body. With the presence of the DPD and the House, we
hope the laws in the future will encourage fairness and will
accommodate more aspirations of the regions. So far, development
has centered on Java or Jakarta. We can give input to create laws
that promote decentralization, fairness and proportional
distribution.

Do you think there are obstacles for the DPD in carrying out
its functions?

So far so good. You can see that during the Assembly session,
our arguments are accepted by politicians from other parties. The
composition of the Assembly leaders symbolically shows the
equality between the DPD and the House.

We have also organized a hearing with Cabinet ministers. There
is no problem. But, of course, we hope our function will later be
strengthened. The DPD must not only have the authority to submit
proposals, but must also have the power to reject. We hope the
DPD will perform optimally.

When will you realize the plan? Or have you started the move?

We started this plan from the beginning. We have taken one of
our steps, namely passing the composition of the Assembly
leaders. Regarding our function in legislation, we have organized
hearings with the government, the President and the Cabinet
ministers. We have also made regional visits.

Currently, we are in the process of preparing a report from
the regional visit. We will soon discuss crucial issues with the
House, especially regarding regional interests.

Do you have a plan to strengthen the DPD through a
constitutional amendment or revision of laws?

Yes. We will do that later. Now, we are focusing on the task
at hand. We will strengthen the DPD so that the DPD will have the
right to voice rejections. Through legislation, advocacy and
supervision, there will be a collective opinion on the need to
strengthen the DPD.

It must not be the main goal. If we focus on that issue, we
will only target the power struggle. This is simply a matter of
strategy. We must now keep on doing our job.

In spite of some weaknesses, the presence of the DPD is a
recognition of decentralization, after decades of authoritarian
government. We hope that the DPD will fight for the aspirations
of the regions.

For me, the establishment of the DPD is one step toward a
better state administration. It is in an equal position with the
House and the President. The issue of the DPD's lack of power is
just a matter of time. We have to be optimistic.