Surabaya municipal administration has blocked government employees’ access to top social networking websites Facebook and Friendster and instant messaging tool Yahoo Messenger, blaming the online services for a decline in the civil servants’ performance.
The policy, effective starting Monday, applies in the municipal administration down to subdistrict level. It followed findings that many government employees did nothing but browse the popular websites during work hours.
“The social networking is beneficial, but there is a rule to comply with. I don’t deny some civil servants spend most of their time accessing Facebook,” a government employee said Tuesday.
Head of the municipal information agency, Chalid Buchari, said hundreds of civil servants working at the mayor’s office accessed the popular websites on their computers, slowing the internet connection and eventually public services.
“We face such a condition when the municipal government is racing against time to finish the draft regional budget for 2010,” Chalid said.
He added many contractors had also complained about the slow processing of tender for projects offered by the municipal government.
“The mayor does not prohibit government employees to surf the websites for information or to communicate on the internet, but in order for them to stay focused he decided to block the three websites during work hours,” Cholid said.
But a number of employees ‘addicted’ to Facebook remain cool despite the ban, opting to use their smart phones to stay connected with the virtual social network.
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