Government falls short of problem-solving capacity

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Thu, 11/09/2006 11:49 AM

Aleksius Jemadu, Bandung

Whether or not President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will be re-elected in 2009 will depend on at least two things.

First, he has to change his image from ""Mr. Nice Guy"" to that of an effective problem-solver.

Second, he must convince the public that all his cabinet ministers are delivering concrete results. If Indonesia's problem-solving capacity continues to decline, Yudhoyono's prospects for re-election will be seriously jeopardized.

When Indonesia refuted Soeharto's authoritarianism and embraced a more democratic political system, many people expected the nation's problem-solving capacity to increase. They believed democracy would encourage social participation and open access so that all parties could contribute to solving national problems.

However, there is clear evidence that some issues are moving from bad to worse. For instance, Indonesia has failed to overcome the problem of haze caused by forest fires, with the result that both Singapore and Malaysia continue to criticize the government at regional meetings.

While our macroeconomy is relatively stable at this time, some economic indicators also remain worrisome. According to official statistics, 39 million out of 220 million Indonesians are living under the absolute poverty line. However, the real situation is even worse. If the poverty benchmark of a dollar a day is used, that number could double. In addition, the current economic growth of about 5 percent annually is too low to absorb the rapidly increasing numbers of job seekers.

Even within the developing world, Indonesia is falling far behind. The Sept. 16 edition of The Economist reported on a fundamental change in the global distribution of economic power. In 2005, the combined output of emerging economies accounted for more than half of the total world GDP. While countries like China, India, Brazil and Mexico continue to catch up with the developed world, Indonesia is still struggling to stop the rapid growth of its poor.

Apparently aware that Indonesia's political and economic reform has not produced the desired results, President Yudhoyono has established a special unit within the presidential office whose main task is to manage the government's reform efforts. The establishment of this new institution has been greeted by public criticism. There is no guarantee that more bureaucracy can improve the government's performance.

In fact, there are ways to strengthen the government's problem-solving capacity without increasing government spending.

The Indonesian public knows that the President himself works hard and is quite serious about his job. But is the President ready to take the risk of dismissing his cabinet ministers when they fail to produce the required results? President Yudhoyono's tendency to want please everybody will sabotage his character and ultimately become a recipe for failure.

It is a common phenomenon in new democracies that all levels of government become more assertive in protecting their turf. For instance, the central government may be eager to simplify the red tape surrounding investing. However, local governments may subvert this by imposing their own regulations in pursuit of money. No wonder Indonesia ranks very poorly in terms of the total cost and time needed to get a permit for business and investment activities.

It is now clear that democratization alone cannot immediately improve the government's problem-solving capacity, especially in the economic field.

Instead of creating new bureaucracies, the government needs to maximize the function of existing institutions that have the most immediate, direct, and powerful impact on economic growth, property rights, poverty alleviation and human resources development.

Consider the fact that the current economic success of both China and India is based on the presence of social and economic institutions that are capable of producing progress in society. There is no reason why the Indonesian government cannot develop the same institutions in order to strengthen its problem-solving capacity.

The writer is head of the Department of International Relations and the MA study program in international relations at Parahyangan University, Bandung. He can be reached at aljemadu@yahoo.co.uk.

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