Ratih's job ranking causes an uproar

JAKARTA (JP): State Secretary Ali Rahman was stumped on Monday after legislators questioned why Presidential Secretary Ratih Kaniawan Hardjono was accorded senior civil service ranking despite never having been a civil servant.

During a hearing with House of Representatives' Commission I for defense and security, foreign affairs, information and legal affairs, the legislators reproached Ali for allowing a noncareer civil servant to receive instantaneous promotion to the rank usually reserved for departmental director generals.

Abdurrahman created the new post of presidential secretary and personally selected the former Kompas daily correspondent to Australia for the job.

According to several legislators, Ratih was immediately enrolled into the civil service and accorded the rank of IVc.

University graduates entering the civil service are usually given a IIIa ranking.

Most civil servants usually obtain promotions every two to five years.

Grade III has four different levels -- from A to D -- through which a civil servant must pass before entering grade IVa.

Legislators also queried the appointment of subordinates to the new presidential secretary -- head of the protocol bureau Wahyu Muryadi and bureau chief of general affairs and palace administrative affairs Arifin Junaidi -- as civil servants.

Legislators said they were not questioning the type of post assigned to the new presidential assistants, but the senior civil service rank accorded them.

Golkar Party legislator Hajriyanto Thohari warned that by according the high civil service rank, the move would create jealousy among career civil servants as all three new appointees previously worked in the private sector.

"Their installments will create jealousy among civil servants who have developed their careers over the years," Hajriyanto said.

Many legislators noted that such ranks have to be earned during a career, and that new applicants are not usually accepted if they are over 30 years of age.

One legislator said that he knew of a civil servant who had worked for 12 years but had only earned a IIIc ranking, while Ratih had immediately obtained the IVc ranking.

Ali Rahman was at a loss to explain the situation, and was forced to ask for time to review and respond to the issue at a later date.

"I will give a written answer about the presidential secretary," Ali promised.

Hajriyanto warned that the incident could set a bad precedent.

He said he could understand that Abdurrahman wanted his most trusted aides to handle personal affairs, however it was another issue altogether to grant so many of them the high civil service ranking.

"If it was only Ratih maybe I could tolerate it, but not so many people like it is now," he said.

Hajriyanto said former president B.J. Habibie also brought in his trusted people to the palace, including Dewi Fortuna Anwar, Umar Juoro and Indria Samego.

"But they were civil servants before they were installed as Habibie's advisors," he later told journalists.

Legislator Aisyah Amini of the United Development Party (PPP) also questioned the move.

"We hope the government will avoid issuing presidential decrees which violate existing laws," Aisyah said. (jun)