Military plan of action

Military plan of action

In a military organization, you will always find a commander,
chief of staff and staff in the headquarters, and units to carry
out the orders.

The commander, assisted by his chief of staff, makes all the
planning that must be executed by the units and the supporting
elements.

In the efforts to find a solution to our national economic and
financial crisis, I see a similarity in organization to what I
explained above.

Recently, the President has created the Dewan Pemantapan
Ketahanan Ekonomi dan Keuangan (DPKEK), or the council for the
stabilization and resilience of the economy and finance, which
can be considered as the headquarters of the National Recovery
Operation. President Soeharto is the commander and Prof. Widjojo
Nitisastro serves as his chief of staff.

The headquarters will plan and translate all the points in the
letter of intent signed between the IMF and the nation. All kinds
of necessary actions will be mapped out by the headquarters, and
a stream of instructions and orders will flow from here.

Two main actions are important. One is continuous and right
actions in the economic and financial fields. Second is the
restoration and maintenance of public trust and confidence in the
government to secure wholehearted support.

It is difficult to say which one of the two is more important,
because they support each other. So we find four vital elements
working together to guarantee success.

1. The think tank and the headquarters of the whole national
operation.

2. The units to carry out the plans mapped out by the
headquarters or think tank.

3. The supporting units to create and maintain peace and order to
give a conducive psychological atmosphere so that the government
can execute all plans.

4. The public to be regularly informed of the development so that
they maintain confidence and cooperation.

Let us look closely at the job description of each branch.

1. The DPKEK forms the headquarters of the whole national
operation in all its aspects. Here we find all the competent and
experienced officers, who will plan what should be done by making
the right diagnosis and finding the right therapy, taking into
consideration the availability of personnel and means.

2. The field units' task is to execute headquarters' plans,
including on economic and financial matters.

3. The supporting units are to create and maintain an
atmosphere of peace and order so that any situation arising out
of the actions of the units can be explained accurately, to reach
the maximum willingness of the people to support and cooperate
with the government.

Most important is to keep people happy through providing them
with enough food. The units should also find ways and means to
suppress unfounded rumors by providing a regular stream of
correct information. This task could be given to the coordinating
minister of political affairs and security.

4. The public should realize that the government is doing its
utmost to overcome this crisis. The people's trust and confidence
on the government should be created and maintained. This task
could be given to the Ministry of Information, supported by
social and religious leaders.

I am convinced that by employing this method we will recover
very soon, remembering that Indonesians are a nation of winners.

SOEGIH ARTO

Jakarta