Trade-industry ministry merger hailed

Trade-industry ministry merger hailed

JAKARTA (JP): The government's decision to merge the
ministries of industry and trade was lauded by economists and
politicians as timely and strategic for the economy.

Others linked the mini-reshuffle of the cabinet to the
slackening of Indonesia's exports over the past year, which they
attributed to trade minister Satrio Budiardjo Joedono, who has
now been dropped out of the cabinet.

They pointed out that while Indonesia's exports have been
growing at 14 percent a year, imports are growing by 30 percent.

But Joedono told reporters in his office after the
announcement that the merger was a "logical" move in the face of
rapid globalization, Antara reported.

He refuted the suggestion that he had not performed well.
"This is not about blame," said Joedono, who disclosed that he
had been informed of the imminent move a week before.

Still he did not take the decision personally. "Just imagine,
two departments merged and you're left with two ministers for one
job. One has eight years of experience in the cabinet, the other
2.5 years. Who would you choose?"

The new Minister of Industry and Trade, Tunky Ariwibowo,
meanwhile told reporters in his office that with his new expanded
portfolio, his chief task will be to bolster exports. "We have to
win in global competition," he said.

Economist Suhadi Mangkusuwondo said the merger eliminates the
overlaps in tasks of the two ministries that had existed before.

The two ministries were not in consultation with one another
and each had been going its own separate ways in selecting the
products it wanted to promote for exports, Suhadi said.

He added that the deregulation measures undertaken by the
government since the 1980s had virtually removed the role of the
Ministry of Trade as a regulator.

Business consultant Rizal Ramli said the merger is timely with
the advent of free trade arrangements, first in Southeast Asia by
2003, and later in the Asia Pacific by 2020. "With the merger,
I'm confident that Indonesia can bolster its exports."

Business consultant Laksamana Sukardi viewed the merger as a
move to streamline the government, given that the Ministry of
Trade has become virtually redundant.

"We desperately need to streamline our government. There are
many other ministries that could be merged, because they are
burdens to the state budget and to the business community,"
Laksamana said.

"A bureaucracy that does not have work, will look for work,"
he said, noting the habit of government agencies to impose fees
in return for their work. "The result is a high cost economy."

"I praise this decision, but I hope this is only the start...
I expect more redundancies to be eliminated," he said.

Yet another consultant, Didik J. Rachbini, said the choice of
Tunky over Joedono for the job reflected President Soeharto's
evaluation of their performances. "Remember the cement shortage,
the falling export figures and suchlike ?" Didik asked.

Political analyst Amir Santoso said mid-term cabinet
reshuffles are now no longer a taboo in Indonesia and more
changes could come in the future if there is a strategic need for
them.

"I welcome this positive development, because the President
has shown his pragmatism, and I don't mean this in a negative
sense," Amir said.

Another political analyst, Nazaruddin Sjamsuddin said Soeharto
broke with tradition by changing the cabinet half way through,
and this should serve as a reminder to other members of the
cabinet to work even harder. (team)