Govt fronts bill on Cabinet dissolution

Govt fronts bill on Cabinet dissolution

Kurniawan Hari
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

Reconfirming its refusal to deliberate the presidential bill put
forth by the House of Representatives, the government said on
Monday it would instead propose a bill on the formation and
dissolution of the Cabinet.

Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra said
the government would write to the House an official explanation
on its stance over the presidential bill.

Yusril said the government considered the Cabinet bill a top
priority, speaking after his meeting with House Speaker Akbar
Tandjung, House Legislation Body (Baleg) chairman Zain Badjeber
and legislators Agustin Teras Narang and Ferry Mursyidan Baldan.

Yusril, accompanied by State Secretary Bambang Kesowo and
State Minister of Administrative Reforms Feisal Tamin, reiterated
that most of the articles in the presidential bill were outdated.

Teras and Ferry declined to comment on the matter.

The House proposed the presidential bill to President Megawati
Soekarnoputri in December 2001, but after two years, no minister
has been appointed by the President to represent the government
in deliberating the bill with the House.

Yusril said the presidential bill was prepared while the
constitution was still undergoing revisions. The amendments
concluded in August 2002.

"We appreciate the House members for preparing the bill, any
way," he said.

Regarding the Cabinet bill, Yusril said it deserved priority
as it was mandated by the amended constitution and was "more
useful" than the presidential bill.

The draft Cabinet bill stipulates that the President will only
appoint those Cabinet ministers who will help him or her conduct
state duties.

For example, Yusril said, the President would need the foreign
minister in maintaining international relations, the defense
minister in maintaining national security, the justice minister
in upholding the law and the coordinating minister of people's
welfare in improving the well being of the people.

"Of course, the president may reduce or increase the number of
ministries. It depends on necessity," he said, adding that the
establishment of the posts of state minister of state enterprises
or state minister of administrative reforms had been incidental.