DPD seeks equality with the House
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The successful election of leaders of the People's Consultative Assembly has inspired the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) to propose amendments to the Constitution that would encourage equality between the council and the House of Representatives.
The plan was unveiled on Tuesday during a DPD plenary session to hear progress reports from some of its working groups, including one on the formation of a disciplinary council and another on relations with the House.
"We will assign a separate committee to propose amendments to the Constitution and some related laws. The changes are needed to establish equality between the two law-making bodies," DPD member Muspani said on Tuesday.
Though DPD members are directly elected by the people, the Constitution and Law No. 22/2003 on the composition of the Assembly, the House, the DPD and regional legislatures, reduce the DPD to secondary status compared to the House.
According to legislation, DPD members will be invited to attend House plenary sessions only to hear the president deliver the draft state budget.
The DPD has little legislative power, but can provide suggestions to the House regarding the deliberation of bills on the state budget and regional administration. DPD members can submit their suggestions, but they are not involved in deliberating bills.
The DPD was introduced this year as Indonesia moved to a bicameral representation system in the wake of flagging public trust in political parties. The DPD emulates the Senate in the United States.
Each province has four representatives in the DPD who, like House members, were elected in the legislative election.
The struggle for equality with the House gained momentum earlier this month when the 128-strong DPD push for an Assembly leadership consisting of two House and two DPD representatives.
House members, particularly from parties included in the Nationhood Coalition, rejected the quota, saying the Assembly comprised individual members of the House and the DPD, not two institutions.
GKR Hemas, a DPD member from Yogyakarta, said the Constitution and existing legislation provided the DPD with a weak bargaining position vis-a-vis the House.
She said the proposed constitutional amendments would be discussed by a nine-member team.
The Assembly has amended the Constitution four times since 1999, with the last amendment resulting in the introduction of the DPD.
DPD Speaker Ginandjar Kartasasmita said the DPD would take as a reference the work of the Constitutional Commission, which has assessed all of the constitutional amendments between 1999 and 2003.
The commission has said the amendments were flawed and accommodated too many short-term political interests.
"The commission suggested, among other things, the DPD's right to veto bills sponsored by the House," Ginandjar said.
The DPD will also propose a revision to the law on the composition of legislative bodies, he added.
Some DPD members attending the plenary session on Tuesday also proposed that the DPD be given the authority to summon the president to explain the draft budget.