Old call, new caller

Almost a week after Speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR) Wahono called on law makers to do some serious soul- searching to evaluate their own performances, reactions are still coming from various circles.

Wahono's predecessors, especially Mohammad Kharis Suhud, from whom the current speaker took over the job, have made the same call, but the way Wahono made his statement sounded more relevant and more impressive. He reminded the DPR members that the legislative body had been created to prevent the formation of a repressive, or fascist government.

The reactions might have been provoked by the mood existing as the people mark the 50th year of national independence with louder calls for greater political openness.

However that may be, the lamentable reality is that during the last three decades the DPR has never sponsored any bill. It has only endorsed those set forth by the administration.

That is why many people say that the repeated call for action is easier said than done. Particularly in light of the fact that some authorities see the plea as having the ability to awaken the sleeping tiger of liberal democracy.

Among the factors that have hampered the effort to make a stronger legislative body are the DPR's own non-democratic procedural rules and its inability to decide its own budget. This has caused legislators' inaction and the political immaturity among the law makers.

It is also a reality that the legislators only pack the meeting hall when a cabinet minister is on hand. The situation seems even more comic when one sees that in many cases they are often so spellbound by the ministers' statements that they forget to get the people's message across. This only goes to prove that the legislators have become less sensitive towards the public's problems. And the root cause of this unattractive trend is apparently their lack of political professionalism.

Three decades after the current administration vowed to heal the political ills left by president Sukarno's government, it is far from gratifying to hear the people making jokes about the law makers' performance, which evolves around attending meetings and listening well but keeping quiet before going home after signing for payment.

This view mirrors the reality pointed out by Afar Gaffar, an observer of the political situation from Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta. He has noted that absenteeism is still rampant among DPR members, who don't seem to care much about the increasing trend toward monopoly, the annual rise in cement prices and corruption -- outside of the scandal at the state-owned bank, Bapindo.

With this situation, it is no wonder that the authorities do not seem to think they have to pay serious attention to the DPR's calls. For example, the sluggish reaction of the authorities when the DPR called for their attention to the problem of port congestion at Tanjung Priok harbor. Ironically, they moved fast enough when the Asia North America Eastbound Rate Agreement made the same appeal.

The weak position of the legislative body is a product of the present system. The situation can only be improved if the ruling elite believe that a strong DPR is as equally important as a strong administration. The venture towards this end should begin with more democratic general elections, participated in by a number of viable political contestants.

The second step would be to guarantee that no more legislators will be asked to leave the law making body by their parties. Of course, this may not be possible in the near future, in light of the fact that Wahono himself lacked the political clout to block the recalling of DPR members recently.