Wahono says lip service won't combat corruption

Wahono says lip service won't combat corruption

JAKARTA (JP): House Speaker Wahono said yesterday that the
government campaign to combat corruption and collusion should not
rest on words alone.

Addressing legislators in closing the current House session,
Wahono said that there was no call for rhetoric or the trading of
accusations over graft, since these would not solve the problem.

"We have to pay attention to corruption and collusion in view
of the high-cost economy which they will bring about, but it will
be better for to develop courageous behavior by refraining from
blaming others for the irregularities," Wahono said.

"Each of us must engage in introspection, an attitude that
will prove our maturity," he added.

Wahono was apparently commenting on a polemic sparked by
Minister of Transmigration Siswono Yudohusodo a few weeks ago.
Siswono said the anticorruption drive would be a success if
senior government officials voluntarily declared their wealth
prior to and after the completion of their terms of office.

State Minister of Administrative Reforms T.B. Silalahi poured
cold water on Siswono's suggestion, saying that the country
already had mechanisms for controlling the wealth of high-ranking
officials.

With discussion of the issue becoming more prevalent, Silalahi
told a hearing with the House's commission on internal affairs
last Monday that incompetent officials should stop talking about
corruption.

Wahono said government officials carried the burden of meeting
public demands because it was the people who granted them their
positions.

"We always have to remind them that they are receiving an
honor in assuming their posts and are obliged to show their
accountability," Wahono said.

The House of Representatives will begin a recess on Monday. It
will resume its sittings on Aug. 16, when President Soeharto is
scheduled to deliver a state-of-the-nation speech on the eve of
the national Independence Day.

It will be the last recess for the House legislators, whose
five-year term expires on Sept. 30.

Wahono said that during the recess the House would send
delegations to various inter-parliamentary conferences. They
include the conference on sustainable development held by the
United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in New York, the
conference on women's roles, health and environment held by the
IMPO doctors' association in Bangkok and the 18th general session
of the Association of Inter-Parliament Organizations (AIPO) in
Denpasar.

After the recess, the House will continue deliberations of
seven government-sponsored bills and amendments to the House's
internal rules. (amd)