Quality of legislators

Many people are of the view that even now, the position of the House of Representatives is not on par with that of the government. The executive branch is still seen to overly dominate our system of government. The low level of public participation in our state affairs gives a clear picture of the feeble position of our legislature as compared to that of the executive branch. Thus, the House of Representatives has come to be regarded as a mere instrument to lend legitimacy to the actions of the bureaucrats.

This kind of situation clearly cannot be allowed to continue. Our legislature needs members of substantial quality who are able to lift the stature of this institution to equal that of the government.

Thus far, considerations of loyalty and group representation have dominated the process of nominating candidates for membership in our legislature. It appears that those considerations will still reign strongly in the upcoming general election. Even so, the new awareness of the importance of considerations of professionalism in the selection of legislators is something that deserves to be noted.

-- Republika, Jakarta