New building should bolster House performance: Speaker
New building should bolster House performance: Speaker
JAKARTA (JP): A new office building, once completed next year,
should bolster the performance of legislators in representing the
people, Speaker of the House of Representatives Wahono said
yesterday.
Wahono met with President Soeharto at the latter's Bina Graha
presidential office to discuss the final preparations for the
construction of the Rp 116 billion ($50 million) 24-story
building in the House's huge complex in the Senayan district.
If everything goes as planned, House members will be able to
move in by March next year, Wahono said.
Among the main features of the new office building, which has
a total space of 55,662 square meters, are the spacious
conference rooms for every faction in the House, rooms for the
House leaders, and a 24-square-meter room each for the 500 House
members.
In comparison, under the present facility, a 24-square meter
room is used by 10 people, he said.
There will also be rooms for expert aides to legislators who
will help House members formulate bills.
"If you've been questioning why hasn't the House ever
initiated a bill, that's because for that kind of work, House
members need the assistance of experts," Wahono told reporters.
"That's why I'm optimistic that with the new facility, the
House members will have the ability to initiate new bills," he
said.
All the legislations passed by the House since 1965 have been
initiated by the government, lending credence to the accusations
that the House is a mere rubber stamp for the government.
The new building is being financed entirely from the state
budget. The contractor is Citra Adijoyo Operation which is a
joint venture between state-owned contractor PT Adikarya and PT
Citra Lamtorogung, a private company owned by President
Soeharto's eldest daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana.
Wahono said he has also secured the President's approval to
finance the construction of an Rp 3.8 billion mosque inside the
House complex .
On another matter, Wahono said the chaos on the roads, bus
terminals, ferry ports and railway stations seen during the Idul
Fitri holiday this past week reflected the lack of discipline
among the people.
"The National Discipline Movement launched since last year has
been mere lip service," he said.
Given Indonesia's strong paternal tradition, it is the people
in high government positions who should begin the discipline
drive and the rest of the people will be bound to follow, he
said.
"It seems like a small thing but that is the reality about
discipline," he said. (01)