House pledges to finish 41 bills
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The House of Representatives (DPR) made a familiar promise when it resumed its sitting period on Monday, boasting to complete the deliberation of all 41 bills before the start of the next recess, which commences on June 28.
A quick calculation shows that the lawmakers will have to endorse an average of one bill every day if they are to live up to that pledge.
One does not have to go far back in history to see that the legislative body always misses its target. In the previous 38-day sitting period, the House only endorsed 18 of the 53 bills listed on its legislation agenda.
Among the bills given top priority this time around are bills on presidential elections, on the composition of legislative bodies, on the national education system and on the constitutional court.
In his opening speech, House Speaker Akbar Tandjung said the special committees deliberating the bills on presidential elections and the composition of legislative bodies had given the public the chance to give advice or articulate their aspirations.
He praised public access to the deliberation, saying that it would help create qualified and acceptable legislation.
Of the 41 bills on the list, 28 were initiated by House members, which used to take a longer time to endorse than those sponsored by the government. A clear example is the broadcasting bill, which was endorsed in November last year after two years of grueling debate.
The chairman of the House's legislation body, Zein Badjeber, said that although the bills were proposed by the legislators, the House could not start deliberation without the presence of government officials.
Zein said the House had asked the President to assign the related ministers to join the deliberation of the bills.
"There are more than 10 bills which have not been responded to by the government," Zein told The Jakarta Post, adding that the bill on the constitutional court was among the bills in question.
The 1945 Constitution, amended in August last year, mandates the government and the House to have the constitutional court established by August this year.
"We will on May 13 form a special committee to deliberate the constitutional court bill," Zein said.
Unlike the previous opening plenary sessions, no interruptions were heard in protest of Akbar's appropriateness to chair the meeting on Monday. Akbar, who is also the Golkar Party chairman, was sentenced to three years in jail for a graft case, but is free pending his appeal to the Supreme Court.
Three legislators did interrupt the meeting as soon as Akbar finished his speech, but none of them questioned Akbar's legal status.
Tunggul Sirait of the National Awakening Party faction asked legislators to focus their attention on the reopening of sawmill firm PT Inti Indorayon Utama in the North Sumatra town of Porsea, while Mawardi Abdullah and Nurdahri Ibrahim of the Crescent Star Party and United Development Party factions respectively urged the House to take a closer look at Aceh's problems.
A lack of discipline remains an integral part of legislators as the plenary meeting was opened 40 minutes behind schedule to allow the session to meet the quorum. Only 248 of the 494 legislators were present when Akbar finally declared the sitting period open.
------------------------------------------------------------ List of bills for further deliberation ------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Presidential election 2. Composition of legislative bodies 3. Freedom of information 4. Revision to Bank Indonesia law 5. State treasury 6. State finance accountability 7. Mechanism of legislation enactment 8. Terrorist eradication 9. National education system 10. Industrial dispute settlement 11. Bankruptcy 12. Attorney 13. Migrant workers protection 14. Batam free trade area 15. Postal affairs 16. Establishment of West Sulawesi province 17. Fisheries 18. Agriculture 19. Witness protection 20. Racial discrimination eradication 21. Supreme Court 22. State administrative court 23. General court 24. Jakarta administration 25. Judicial commission 26. Constitutional court 27. Ombudsman 28. Presidency 29. Sports 30. Geothermal 31. Bank liquidation 32. Justice authorities 33. Medical practice 34. Establishment of some regencies --------------------------------------------------------------- Source: House secretariat