Lawmakers eye at least 10 bills this sitting

Lawmakers eye at least 10 bills this sitting

Berni K. Moestafa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Thirty-six bills, including the crucial political bills and
others submitted more than two years ago, are still stalled in
the nation's legislature, better known for its outspokenness than
its productivity.

The House of Representatives started a new session on August
16, having passed only two bills during its last session.

Legislator Firman Jaya Daeli of the Indonesian Democratic
Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), and a member of the House's
Legislation Committee, promised a better performance this time
around.

"We're expecting to deliberate more than 10 bills in this
session," Firman said on Tuesday.

The 39 stalled bills include seven that were submitted by the
government to, or initiated by the legislature in 2000, 10 in
2001 and 19 more in 2002.

Newer bills are also in the pipeline as a result of the recent
amendments to the 1945 Constitution.

Among the outstanding bills, Firman said, the priority was to
conclude the debates on the general election and political party
bills.

With the 2004 general election looming, time is running short
for the nation to adequately prepare for the quinquennial event
-- which this time around will be the first time ever that
Indonesians will be permitted to directly elect their president.

"We're also rushing to pass the bills on the constitutional
court and the judicial commission," Firman added.

In line with the revised Constitution, the new Court is tasked
with, among other things, settling disputes on the interpretation
of the Constitution.

A law on the judicial commission is in the making to form an
independent body that will appoint judges. At present, this power
is vested in the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights.

Other bills on the top of the list include the three economic
bills on the state finances, state financial accountability and
the state treasury, Firman said.

They have been awaiting deliberation since the government
submitted them in October 2000. Two bills on labor development
and protection, and the settlement of industrial disputes were
handed over to the legislature in May and June respectively.

Critics have slammed legislators for their slow work, which
the critics blame on too much politicking. The House not only
passes laws but also oversees how the government runs the
country.

Lately, however. analysts have noted that legislators were
attempting to expand their influence into areas that should be
the preserve of the executive.

Political analyst Bachtiar Effendi said this development might
come at the expense of the House's other function of endorsing
laws.

Legislators have previously said that hearings with state
institutions over their policies, performances or in response to
reports from the public were taking up most of their time.

Throughout 2001, they devoted much of their energy to ousting
President Abdurrahman Wahid, which they finally succeeded in
doing in July of that year.

Abdurrahman had got himself into hot water with the
legislators early on during his 22-month administration due in
part to his frequently insensitive statements.

"I think that this has somewhat improved under Megawati," said
Bachtiar referring to President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

But time-consuming politicking, he said, was not the only
problem affecting legislators' productivity.

According to Bachtiar, many of the legislators lacked the
backgrounds necessary for dealing with complicated bills.

"They (lawmakers) don't have the qualifications, and it takes
a lot of time to gather information as they also don't have
expert advisors at their disposal," Bachtiar said.

Since the 1999 election, he added, the legislature had been
accommodating additional factions. "Now it takes more time to
reach a compromise," he explained.