Govt reforms, monitoring vital in developing Papua

Marcellus Rantetana ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 03/28/2008 1:38 AM  |  Opinion

The Papuan local government is facing serious bureaucratic problems, such as disorganization, poorly skilled personnel, overlapping duties and complicated bureaucratic procedures. The number of units under the provincial government, for example, exceeds the number legally required. The province currently has 19 dinas (ministry offices), where it should have 18, and 16 badan (technical units), where 12 should be sufficient.

Various studies have also identified the incompetence of officials as the primary reason behind bureaucratic problems. Many officials do not have adequate appropriate skills and expertise to undertake their duties and responsibilities.

Bureaucratic reform should be at the center of Papuan development programs. Undertaking such reform in Papua, however, will not be as straight forward as in the other areas of this country, because besides introducing professionalism, improved skills and education are required by locals.

Blindly applying the Fit and Proper test, for example, will attract professionals but will close doors for most Papuans, which contradicts the purpose of developing the region. The reform must be tailored in such a way it will allow locals to strengthen their capacity to work.

Efficient and effective bureaucracy is necessary; it is not sufficient to implement development programs. Competent bureaucrats without adequate public oversight will lead to power abuse and corruption, as we have witnessed all these years throughout the country.

We are informed almost every day of local government officials, even parliament members, embezzling public money. Things tend to be worse in Papua as the information gap between local government officials and the public is still large compared to those in other parts of the country.

Therefore, building the working capacity and education of Papuans is a sine qua non condition -- they will only be able to meaningfully participate in the development process if they can comprehend the things going on around them.

Governor Barnabas Suebu's commitment to focus on education and nutrition by allocating more funds to the areas is timely and strategic in this regard.

The governor has also put in place a program called RESPEK (Village Strategic Development Program) targeted directly to Papuans at the grass roots level. Under this program, villages throughout Papua are allocated a sizable amount of funds through grant schemes that can be used for particular purposes from food and nutrition to security and human rights. Some kampungs have ended up with between Rp 300 million and Rp 500 million in grants.

It should be ensured external workers do not take over jobs of the local people. Quite often, under the assumption the locals do not have the required skills, the external supporters end up undertaking most of the program's tasks. We need to keep in mind the people -- even those we think are least knowledgeable -- have their own ways of solving their own problems, as has been proven by Sragen Regent Untung Wiyono.

These programs will only be effective and efficient if a proper accountability system is established. The government has internal control systems at all levels, however, the effectiveness of these systems is questionable for various reasons.

Therefore, I recommend they set up a special task-force specifically to monitor and evaluate the progress of various programs in place and provide information directly to decision makers, in particular the governor. As such, the governor and other policy makers in Papua will be well informed about the state of the program.

The writer is a staff member of the Partnership for Governance Reform in Indonesia. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the partnership.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.