Improving knowledge

Improving knowledge of Constitution

From Koran Tempo

According to plan, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) will this year again disseminate the amendments to the 1945 Constitution to elaborate on its contents to society at a cost of Rp 22 billion.

Assembly members are comprised of three groups: First, those who are not ex-members of the Ad Hoc Committee (PAH) I of the MPR Working Body (BP MPR); second, ex-members of PAH I BP MPR who approved and were directly involved in the amendments; third, ex- members of PAH I BP MPR who did not fully approve the amendments.

Therefore, logically the elaboration of the 1945 amendments should legitimately be conducted only by former members of PAH I BP MPR, whose number is perhaps no more than 15.

In fact, PAH I BP MPR during 2000-2003 already explained the amendments with extra funds from the communication and information minister's office and also from regions, involving local officials, professionals and Indonesian embassies abroad.

The MPR's Rp 22 billion for this year will only cover very limited target groups if the elaboration is carried out by visiting regions for dialogs. Usually a region is visited by five to ten Assembly members plus secretariat staff, so that the budget will enable them to meet less than half a million people.

This budget would be better spent on the elaboration of the 1945 amendments through central and regional mass media, by disseminating their contents in full form and giving the opportunity for dialogs in the form of questions and answers. Tens of millions of people would be reached by the media.

USEP FATHUDIN Jakarta