Most regions still confused over autonomy
JAKARTA (JP): Confusion rules the roost in the country's sprawling regions following the inception of autonomy on Jan. 1 due to the absence of technical rulings governing the exercise of authority in certain autonomous sectors, the Forum of Regional Representatives (FUD) has concluded.
FUD chairman Oesman Sapta said the slip-up has discouraged both provinces and regencies from taking the initiative in reorganizing their respective administrative structures and issuing the necessary rulings for the exercise of the new powers.
"Most provinces and regencies are eager to run an autonomous administration in certain sectors but are still confused over how to do it," he told The Jakarta Post in a telephone interview from Pontianak, East Kalimantan, on Saturday.
Quoting reports from FUD members in the provinces, Oesman said that no basic changes had taken place in the provincial and regency administration offices.
"So far, no governors, regents or mayors have issued instructions to their subordinates or designed development programs and action plans either to improve their services to the public or to uphold democracy," he said.
Improvement in public services and democratic life, he said, were two main indicators to measure whether autonomy was running well or not.
Oesman, also a regional representative from West Kalimantan in the People's Consultative Assembly, said the central government has to issue a regulation to transfer its authority to governors who according to the autonomy law represented it in the provinces.
"A government regulation on deconcentration is much needed to regulate the authority the central government hands over to the provinces and the latter's competence to handle cross-regency administrative matters," he asserted.
He said the central government must also issue many more presidential decrees on general and technical guidelines for regencies and mayoralties to assist them in applying autonomy in certain sectors.
"The President must issue decrees on autonomous regency administration in eleven sectors -- public works, health, education and culture, agriculture, transportation, industry and trade, investment, environment, agrarian affairs, cooperatives and manpower," he said.
If the regulation and presidential decrees were issued, provincial and regency administrations would have authority to draft local regulations, development programs and action plans in these eleven sectors, he said.
He emphasized that regional autonomy was not aimed at decentralizing and distributing the central government's authority to the provinces and regencies but rather improving the government's services to the public and empowering the people in all fields of life.
"With regional autonomy, provincial and regency administrations therefore should not follow 'the spirit of taxing' that will certainly overburden people, but rather improve their services to the public," he said.
Jimmi Mohammad Ibrahim, former chairman of the West Kalimantan legislative council, concurred and said the provincial and regency administrations in the province have yet to be prepared to fully implement autonomy because of the absence of several government regulations and technical guidelines.
"So far, no significant progress has been made in their preparations for the full implementation of autonomy," he said.
Up to now, many local administrations have failed to draft a priority list of development programs, citing their unfinished deliberation of their respective 2001 draft budgets.
Jimmi said local administrations should take the initiative in drafting general and technical guidelines and draft regulations on their authority in implementing autonomy in the eleven sectors.
"A local administration for example could deregulate the trade and industry sector to empower local small and medium enterprises," he said.
In Makassar, South Sulawesi Governor HZB Palaguna said one key element to the success of regional autonomy, especially in these early stages was adequate funds.
He said the current Rp 232.99 billion from the General Allocation Fund (DAU) to the province is only enough to cover for the province's routine expenditures.
"In the wake of regional autonomy we need more funds...and we hope that the central government can give an additional budget," Palaguna said on Saturday.
Several regencies also complained of the small amount of funds allocated to them.
"Besides the problem of insufficient funds, we also lack regulations on the actual implementation of autonomy. We have to be creative to earn revenue," Makassar mayor HB Amiruddin said.
He cited several disputes, such as the salary system for civil servants working in the regions.
In East Java, all 37 regencies and mayoralties here said that they are "muddling through the process" in running regional autonomy.
"Some 350,000 civil servants are being transferred to the regions across East Java. We are now in the process of sorting regulations and preparing new rules since there is no clear guidance from the central government," East Java regional secretary Soenarjo said.
He also added that his office is working on a list of the newly assigned civil servants and their duties.
"There are many positions that are vacant and we need to place the right people in the right post and it's a very complicated matter," he said.
The local administrative bureaus in East Java is being cut from 13 to 11, while the number of agencies has ballooned from 14 to 21.(27/nur/edt/rms)