Long weekends for civil servants next year

JAKARTA (JP): The government has allowed all its agencies to conduct a trial-run before they fully implement long weekend scheme for civil servants.

Minister of Administrative Reforms TB Silalahi told newsmen, after a meeting with President Soeharto at Bina Graha yesterday, that the scheme will be aimed at tightening the budget, specifically with regard to the use of electricity and telephone lines.

However, Silalahi said that not all government agencies would introduce the program, especially those which are involved in public services.

The minister said that, in the first phase, the offices will introduce the long weekend program once a month.

The frequency will gradually be increased until all civil servants are allowed to have Saturdays and Sundays off every week.

He said that the offices who had introduced the program previously had reported a rise in productivity.

They are the Jakarta municipal administration, the Body for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) and the state-owned oil company Pertamina.

The idea of giving civil servants the right to have Saturdays and Sundays off came from President Soeharto. He said recently that the long weekends would enable them to have more time with their families.

The President said the scheme can help the government agencies tighten their budgets -- by cutting electricity and telephone bills, for example.

He also said that, during the long weekends, civil servants can go to out of town to buy agricultural products at local markets. According to the President, by visiting rural areas, townspeople will help boost rural economy and improve the welfare of villagers.

Silalahi said that he was also aware that many civil servants were moonlighting to help make ends meet.

"We do not turn a blind eye to the realities. As long as they moonlight lawfully we have no objections," the minister said.

According to Silalahi, many civil servants who live and work in rural areas still work actively on farms and some of them even operate ojek (motorcycle taxis).

Silalahi said that the scheme will start next year because 1995 is an important milestone in Indonesian history.

"The republic will be 50 years old next year," he added. (tis)