Truth finally comes out

Of late, corruption, collusion and nepotism have become very popular words among experts (in politics, economics and law), students and laymen. The government, private circles and common people are now fully aware that deeply rooted practices of corruption, collusion and nepotism led to the economic crisis and the crisis of confidence.

Gaps between private and government circles, between the ruling elite and common members of society, and between the welfare level of private employees and that of civil servants and members of the Armed Forces have all led to corrupt practices.

Collusion is practiced because power holders, on the one hand, are bent on using their power to maintain a status quo or to secure their own personal interests or those of their groups/their families, while on the other hand, parties establishing relationships with the power that be would like to see their businesses run smoothly. In the same manner, rampant practices of nepotism are attributable to the desire to maintain power, sources of income and mundane pleasures for one's families, etc.

Practices of corruption, collusion and nepotism must have gone through quite a long process before they became as rife as they are now. And all these years the common people have been falsely fed with such high-sounding pledges such as: "Civil servants serve the people", "the Armed Forces always take sides with the people", "the government always prioritizes people's interests", etc. All these slogans are cliches and people who seek justice because they have been robbed of their rights no longer have trust in either the government or the House of Representatives. People's sincere trust and their great patience have been abused many times by parties receiving the people's decree. It is for this reason that the government and the House of Representatives must correct themselves and make sure that they are always oriented toward helping the economically weak/the helpless.

May I suggest that the government introduce correction as in the following:

1. Make sure that civil servants/members of the Armed Forces enjoy the same welfare level as that of private employees to ensure that they do their jobs properly and stay away from corruption and collusion.

2. Enhance efficiency by, for example, asking incompetent employees to retire early, discharging delinquent employees and promoting high achievers irrespective of their years of service.

3. Properly punishing employees involved in corruption and collusion, regardless of their position, and rewarding employees with high achievement. Names of both types of employees should be announced in the mass media.

4. Instructing business tycoons to set aside, say, 25 percent of their net assets to help small and medium-scale businesspeople. Data must be provided by the Directorate General of Taxation.

5. Donating a monthly meal allowance of Rp 100,000 to a married person who has been laid off.

6. Punishing distributors of basic commodities engaged in hoarding practices, acting as speculators or abusing their business licenses. A special team should be established to exercise control over this matter. Results of the team's work should be publicly announced.

7. Discharging ministers who fail to achieve anything within one year of their assignment and on the other hand rewarding those who make achievements in their areas.

8. Limiting the presidency tenure to two terms only.

9. Orphans and neglected children should be taken care of by the state. An independent institution should be set up to manage these activities. The management of this institution should in no way be related to the President, his family/relatives, high- ranking government/military officials or their families/relatives. Reports of the institution's activities should be audited by an independent institution and announced publicly.

10. Punishing properly private companies involved in smuggling/tax evasion.

M.E. SOFYAN

Jakarta