Bureaucratic reform remains elusive: Mahfud

Constitutional Court chief Moh. Mahfud MD insists that the long-sought bureaucratic reform in the country remains elusive after four presidents.

“None of the presidents has been successful in reforming the bureaucracy. SBY, who has been campaigning for sweeping bureaucratic reform, is no exception,” Mahfud was quoted by kompas.com as saying, referring to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Mahfud was speaking in a dialogue on the roots of judicial corruption in the country.

He said all four presidents – BJ Habibie, Abdurrahman Wahid, Megawati Soekarnoputri and Yudhoyono – had pledged to reform the bureaucracy of the judiciary, but to no avail.

Mahfud said, however, efforts to reform the bureaucracy should continue, as the public well knew that the bureaucracy was a gateway to corrupt practices.

“Our bureaucracy has been held hostage by our past. We have officials and bureaucrats that have been practicing corruption for a long time. The only way out is to break it,” he said.