House asks President to clarify closed ministries

JAKARTA (JP): The House of Representatives passed a motion on Wednesday to summon President Abdurrahman Wahid on Monday Nov. 15 to explain his decision to close down the Ministry of Information and the Ministry of Social Services.

Deputy Speaker Soetardjo Soerjogoeritno said the House leadership would write to the President demanding his presence at the House on Nov. 15.

The date looks set to clash with the President's schedule. He will fly on Thursday to the United States, and is not likely to return by Monday.

The House exercised a rarely used right to summon the president to explain policy decisions.

Soetardjo said the meeting with the President would be limited to discussing the government's decision to close down the two ministries. He expected the President to avail himself for a question and answer session afterwards.

"For now at least, we are not going to ask the President about other matters, such as Israel trade ties or Aceh," he said.

Soetardjo said the closure of the two ministries affected the livelihood and career of 73,000 government workers.

He said the problem must be resolved to the worker's satisfaction.

The motion to summon the President was made by chairman of House Commission I Yasril Ananta Baharudin.

Yasril was supported by 21 House members, fulfilling the requirement for the House to pass the motion.

Yasril argued that the two ministries were still necessary.

He said their closure had not trimmed down the Cabinet because Abdurrahman had at the same time created a new department for maritime exploration.

"The government is not ready to cope with the problem," he said, noting that the government had not even thought about where to place the ministries former employees.

Yasril said he was disappointed at the President's failure to consult the House before taking the decision to close down the two ministries or by initiating a new one. He noted that they were moves that were required by law.

The ministries closure only came to light when the line up of the Cabinet was announced on Oct. 26.

Abdurrahman said the task of the government was to lead the nation and formulate policies rather than to execute them. He also said that many jobs previously handled by the government should now be handled by the people.

Employees of the two ministries have protested the decision, and taken their protests to the House. (02)