Jakarta to have new monitoring councils

Jakarta to have new monitoring councils

JAKARTA (JP): In order to monitor development programs in
lower-level administrations, the city administration is planning
to establish councils in the city's five mayoralties and 265
subdistricts, a city councilor said on Wednesday.

Head of the council's Commission A on government affairs
Binsar Tambunan said the policy to establish councils at the
mayoralty and subdistrict levels was stipulated in a law passed
this year.

"Law No. 34/1999 on the Special Status of Jakarta regulates
the establishment of monitoring councils at the mayoralty and
subdistrict levels," Binsar said.

"The law also requires the councils to be established at the
latest by February next year."

He said the councils would help the Jakarta administration to
monitor the implementation of development programs in lower level
administrations.

"The councils are intended to monitor and motivate development
programs at their respective levels," said Binsar, while
suggesting that members of the councils should be elected from
among the neighborhoods' prominent residents.

"However, it is important to set a clear definition for
'prominent resident' to avoid a biased interpretation."

He also said the members should be elected in a personal
capacity, not for their societal or political group association.

"The members should possess sound characteristics, so that
they won't just become a rubber stamp for the mayor or the
subdistrict head," he said.

Binsar said the City Council would prioritize establishing the
councils at the subdistrict level.

"Initially, we were going to establish one bylaw to regulate
the existence of both mayoralty-level and subdistrict-level
councils," said Binsar.

"But a bylaw cannot regulate on two different matters.
Therefore, we are concentrating on establishing the bylaw for
subdistrict-level councils."

He acknowledged that there were no such councils in Indonesia
to serve as prototypes.

"The City Council has to conduct a feasibility study abroad as
Jakarta might be the only city here to have such councils," said
Binsar.

"And no Asian countries have these councils. The City Council
may have to turn to European or North American countries to
obtain examples." (05)