DPD, President to consult regularly

DPD, President to consult regularly

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and leaders of the Regional
Representatives Council (DPD) agreed on Tuesday to meet every six
months to discuss the various issues facing the country.

Talking to the press after a 30-minute meeting at Merdeka
Palace, DPD Speaker Ginandjar Kartasasmita said they also agreed
that the ad hoc committees of the council and Cabinet members
would meet regularly.

"We agreed to cooperate and have regular meetings between
ministers and DPD ad hoc committees, which are similar to
commissions of the House of Representatives (DPR)," he said.

During the meeting, Ginandjar was accompanied by DPD deputy
speakers La Ode Ida and Erman Gusman.

He said the first meeting between the ad hoc committees and
Cabinet members -- the Minister of Home Affairs, Minister of
Finance and Minister of National Education -- would be held
within the next two days.

"We will speak with the home minister on a government
regulation on direct election of regional heads, as well as the
issue of provincial divisions," Ginandjar said.

According to Ginandjar, immediate issues included the draft
2005 state budget, which is still being deliberated by the House,
and a revision to the 2003 state budget.

"We would also like to learn about the 100-day program from
the government directly, so that we can inform the people and, if
the people have further aspirations, we can convey them
immediately to the government," Ginandjar said.

Other issues needing discussion is teachers' welfare and the
national curriculum.

"These meetings are scheduled to take place in the next two
days, as DPD members will visit provinces across the country from
Nov. 5 to Nov. 23," he said.

The DPD comprises 128 members representing all 32 provinces of
the country, who were directly elected in the April 5 legislative
election.

The council's main duties include providing input in the
deliberation of bills, especially those that have a direct
implication on regions.

The DPD is currently seeking to revise the amended 1945
Constitution to allow them to stand on an equal footing with the
House of Representatives, with which it is to meet annually as
the People's Consultative Assembly.

During the meeting, Ginandjar also requested that the
President postpone installing the new State Audit Agency (BPK)
chairman, Anwar Nasution, as his appointment needed to be
reviewed by the Constitutional Court to determine its
legitimacy.

Nasution was appointed BPK chairman by former president
Megawati Soekarnoputri in her final days in office with House
approval, although the selection of BPK members had been ongoing
since June.

The DPD, on the other hand, was set up only on Oct. 1.

According to the amended Constitution, the appointment of a
BPK chairman also required consultation with the DPD.

"The President has agreed to postpone the inauguration and
wait for the Constitutional Court's decision, as the DPD will
request its expertise on this issue," Ginandjar said.