House poised to endorse code of ethics for legislators

BOGOR, West Java (JP): After weeks of public criticism, following reports of alleged bribery, the House of Representatives has dusted itself off and promised to endorse a code of ethics for legislators.

Deputy House Speaker Syarwan Hamid said here over the weekend that leaders of the legislative body had chosen deputy speakers Abdul Gafur and Fatimah Achmad to set up a team to deliberating the code.

Syarwan said the team would include leaders of the five House factions: dominant Golkar and its allies the Armed Forces and regional representatives factions, the United Development Party (PPP) and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) factions.

"The (planned) code of ethics is part of our mission to improve the performance and image of the House and to build a House which is equal with the executive," Syarwan said during a crash course for journalists, organized by the House secretariat at the official bungalow in Bogor.

He said the idea had actually emerged earlier, during a course for elected House legislators in August, but admitted that the alleged bribes taken by legislators who deliberated the government-sponsored manpower bill had precipitated the plan.

The House came under fire for accepting money from the state- owned workers' social insurance company PT Jamsostek upon the request of Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief.

It sparked controversy about the appropriateness of incentives given by the government to legislators during a bill deliberation.

House Speaker Harmoko said Friday that the code would serve as guidance for the legislators' conduct.

"Enforcement of discipline in the House will, in the future, refer not only to the 1945 Constitution but the code of ethics as well," Harmoko said at the opening of the journalists' course.

He said among the disciplinary actions would be a ban for legislators deliberating a bill outside the House building.

"If legislators and government officials involved in the deliberation want to go out, they can use this House bungalow," he said.

Syarwan said Saturday the code would include general moral guidance.

Transparency

The Golkar faction secretary, Syamsul Mu'arif, and chief of the Indonesian Democratic Party, Budi Hardjono, both said that government incentives given to legislators were acceptable as long as the funds came from a planned budget.

They suggested that the government reveal the amount and source of a budget allotted to the House for a bill deliberation, saying it would enable the House to control any expenditures during the deliberation.

"Such transparency should prevent the government from spending extra money for unclear purposes," Budi said.

He blamed the alleged acts of bribery during the deliberation of the manpower bill on a lack of transparency.

He said in the past the absence of transparency had allowed certain legislators to ask for extra incentives in exchange for their endorsement of a bill.

Budi, however, refused to identify the legislators whom he said had "a skill to lobby ministers".

Deputy Speaker Syarwan said the code of ethics would be combined with efforts to set up a five-year bill for deliberation planning.

"We have to discuss with the government about how many bills should go to the House for deliberation, and decide the priorities and the budget," he said.

Budi suggested that the government prepare 55 bills and the House draw up five bills in the 1997/2002 period. He said that if planning goes well, both the government and the House would deliberate 12 bills each year.

He said bills of consumer protection, national security, law making procedures, local governments and financial autonomy of local governments should top the list of priorities. (amd)

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