New West Sumatra governor faces daunting challenges

New West Sumatra governor faces daunting challenges

Syofiardi Bachyul Jb, The Jakarta Post, Padang

After successfully implementing the principles of good governance
in Solok regency, Gamawan Fauzi, who was elected West Sumatra
governor in the July 27 gubernatorial election, has vowed to
repeat his feat. Gamawan was inaugurated as governor together
with Vice Governor Marlis Rahman on Aug. 15.

"I have the authority now, and we are going to combat
corruption and give good service in the West Sumatra provincial
administration," said Gamawan in an exclusive interview with The
Jakarta Post.

According to the recipient of the Bung Hatta Anticorruption
Award in 2004, he will allot the administration to function as
usual until the end of the year.

"I will then evaluate the condition and prepare steps to
eradicate corruption in 2006," he said.

Gamawan led Solok regency for two terms from 1995 to 2005 and
gradually implemented principles of good governance in the
regency, such as requiring government officials to sign an
"integrity pact" in 2003 in which every official agreed not to
give or receive anything unlawfully. Pacts were also signed by a
number of partners involved in joint projects with the regental
administration.

He was also successful in establishing the One Door Service
Plus, in which public services were performed promptly and
transparently, with the public being informed beforehand about
fees and the time it would take to process all services.

Gamawan plans to implement the same program in the West
Sumatra provincial administration. As an initial step, he signed
a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on corruption between the
provincial administration and the Partnership Governance Reform
in Indonesia.

Gamawan and HS Dillon, from Partnership Governance Reform,
signed the MOU, witnessed by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono,
1,070 traditional leaders, village, district and subdistrict
heads, mayors and regents, in Padang on Thursday last week.

He also signed an MOU with the Corruption Eradication
Commission (KPK) and the minister of administrative reforms in a
joint program to establish good governance and clean government
in the framework of creating an "Island of Integrity" in West
Sumatra.

The first such agreement endorsed by the West Sumatra
administration will be followed up by various concrete programs,
such as assisting the administration to formulate a plan, issue
policies, disseminate information and assist in drafting
provincial bylaws. The agreement is new to the province and is
not binding to mayoral or regental administrations.

"I need time to involve the mayors and regents in discussions
to realize it. I'm sure it will move toward that direction in
time," he said.

Even though the anticorruption drive is on top of Gamawan's
priority list, he is not focusing solely on that. The West
Sumatra provincial administration faces a high unemployment rate,
low investment climate and has an unfeasible number of civil
servants. The number of civil servants has reached 10,000 and is
no longer realistic.

Unemployment and the limited number of job opportunities have
become a serious problem in West Sumatra. Every year, at least
15,000 graduates from a number of higher learning institutes and
some 50,000 senior high school graduates enter the job market.
There is only a small number of investors to create job
opportunities.

However, Gamawan hopes to find a solution to the problem by
heeding people's aspirations and holding talks with various
circles to prepare the Provincial Strategic Plan (Renstra), which
will be initiated next year.

Gamawan was born in Solok on Nov. 9, 1957. He graduated from
Padang's Andalas University's Law School, majoring in
constitutional law and attained his master's degree at the
University of Padang in 2002. Gamawan became the youngest regent
at the age of 37 when he was elected Solok regent in 1995.