Wardiman hails W. Java reading session campaignd

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro has applauded the decision of the West Java provincial legislative council to schedule mandatory reading sessions for its employees.

"The initiative reflects their need to enhance their work performance," Wardiman said yesterday.

He was referring to a program of regularly scheduled reading sessions, twice a week, for civil servants at the secretariat of the West Java legislative council. Compliance would result in further career advancement, Republika reported yesterday.

The daily quoted Redjaningrum Rahmat, head of the secretariat, as saying that employees have to spend at least 30 minutes reading on Tuesday and Friday. "The secretariat staff members need adequate knowledge so that they can support the legislative council leaders and members in making the best decisions," Redjaningrum said.

In addition, the employees have to make written reports about the titles and content of the books that they read.

Wardiman said such action was needed to generate interest in reading among civil servants and he hoped the reading program would be initiated elsewhere in Indonesia.

He said that for most Indonesians, reading was of lower priority than watching movies or dining out.

"Civil servants seeking books from the library of National Institute of Sciences and the National Library are showing their efforts to improve the quality of their knowledge and skills," he said.

Wardiman said professionals from various fields always tried to make time to read despite their busy schedules because of the importance of keeping abreast of the latest developments in their professions.

However, head of the National Library Mastini Hardjoprakoso said the reading program for civil servants would not necessarily guarantee the intended results.

She said the civil servants' busy work schedules, access to a library and availability of books related to their work must also be taken into consideration.

The number of people participating in reading programs was usually limited, Hardjoprakoso said, and often the participants were only guided in what books to read.

The reading program would normally only be implemented at a regional level rather than nationwide, she said.

Hardjoprakoso said that ideally government offices should have their own working libraries for employees to use but these were far and few between. She named the well-stocked National Institute of Administration library as an example of a good library.

Escalating paper prices, budgetary constraints and ignorance on the part of administrative heads, in spite of an available budget, hampered the possibility of improved reading habits among civil servants, she said.

She said parents must instill in their children good reading habits early on in order to improve their academic performance. This was a better option than instilling reading habits in civil servants who are already adults, she said. (01)