House `lacks enthusiasm' to debate key bill

The Jakarta Post ,  JAKARTA   |  Thu, 02/05/2009 4:55 PM  |  National

The House of Representatives may be unable to pass the key corruption court bill on time, partly due to a lack of enthusiasm.

"It will be very hard to meet the deadline because members of the special committee for the bill are not very enthusiastic about attending meetings," Gayus Lumbuun, a committee member from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

The Constitutional Court has given the House until the end of 2009 to pass the bill, meaning legislators only have 11 months left.

But the upcoming legislative election in April is threatening to see some legislators no longer at their posts.

The task of completing the bill cannot be handed over to newly elected House members, therefore if the current legislators fail to pass the bill, it may have to be dismissed because it has no legal basis.

Gayus said the committee was still discussing points in the bill but had not yet officially identified any problem areas.

"The major points now being discussed are the judges' status and whether the courts should be at the regency or provincial level," he said.

The Corruption Court has both full-time and ad hoc judges. Legislators are debating whether the composition for career and ad hoc judges should remain at the current 3:2 ratio.

"I would prefer to have more ad hoc judges in the court," Gayus said.

Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, a committee member from the National Awakening Party (PKB), agreed, saying, "Ad hoc judges are more independent and professional."

But Nasir Jamil, a committee member from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said his faction preferred more full-time judges, to boost public confidence in the courts.

"We are aware people tend to think negatively of full-time judges," he said.

"But that doesn't mean we must give up on them." (dis)

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