Scholar says MPR must strengthen its power

YOGYAKARTA (JP): A scientist has proposed that the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the highest law-making body in Indonesia, expand its power to help promote democracy.

Moersidin Moeklas said the Assembly should have the authority to distribute power to lower state institutions so that the power is not concentrated in the hands of the President.

Lower state institutions are not strong enough to assume their checks-and-balances function, he said.

"The Assembly should give more power to state administrators such as the Supreme Advisory Council, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Audit Agency and the Supreme Court so that each can be strong enough to exercise their power," he said.

Moersidin, a law teacher at Banda Aceh's Syah Kuala University, made the remarks while defending his doctoral dissertation at Gadjah Mada University.

His dissertation discusses the position of the People's Consultative Assembly with respect to the 1945 Constitution. Moersidin's performance was rated by the jury as "satisfactory."

"Under the current system, most power goes to the President. Therefore, it is not surprising for observers to find that all legislation seems to strengthen the President's position," he said.

"In other words, the assembly gives the President a dominant role in state affairs," he added.

Under the current system, the Assembly gives the President the mandate to carry out state policy guidelines.

"In fact, other institutions which are structurally at the same level as the President also implement the state policy guidelines mandated by the Assembly," he said.

He pointed out that the existing laws dealing with the Assembly's authority rigidly refer to the 1945 Constitution and are not flexible enough to be adjusted to current demands. In addition, the laws do not give the Assembly the authority to distribute power to lower high state institutions.

Moersidin proposed that the new Assembly members selected after the 1997 general election be allowed to reformulate the Assembly's roles and authority.

Cynics have branded the Assembly and the lower House of Representatives as rubber stamp institutions eager to back the bureaucracy and unable to defend the people's interests. (har/pan)