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Idle days at House, standoff continues
As the standoff at the House of Representatives drags on, many newly installed lawmakers find themselves simply killing time, being paid for doing nothing
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s the standoff at the House of Representatives drags on, many newly installed lawmakers find themselves simply killing time, being paid for doing nothing.
One such lawmaker is Daniel Johan of the National Awakening Party (PKB), who chooses to spend his afternoons reading books or watching TV in his office on the 21st floor of the Nusantara I building in the House complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta.
The 42-year-old politician said there was little that he could do, given there was no fixed schedule on what he should do on any given day.
If he was bored reading or watching TV, he went next door and chatted with fellow lawmakers.
'Honestly, I didn't want to see myself end up doing this,' said Daniel, who was elected after winning 28,000 votes in West Kalimantan.
However, Daniel thought it was the price he had to pay for standing up for what he thought was right.
'It's my responsibility to take sides, although I know there are 70 million voters not yet represented in the House leadership.'
More than a month after the lawmakers' official inauguration, the House is yet to start work following a standoff between the Red-and-White Coalition and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P)-led Great Indonesia Coalition over the leadership of the legislative body.
In response to what it deemed the 'authoritarian' leadership of the House, the Great Indonesia Coalition announced last week its own version of the House leadership, with PKB lawmaker Ida Fauziah appointed as speaker and the PDI-P's Effendi Simbolon, the United Development Party's (PPP) Syaifullah Tamliha, the NasDem Party's Maj. Gen. (ret.) Supiadin Aries Saputra and the Hanura Party's Dossy Iskandar Prasetyo serving as the coalition's deputy speakers.
- Great Indonesian Coalition still railing at 'authoritarian' leadership of the House
- Lawmakers are being paid, but are not deliberating bills
- Ruhut Sitompul calls for 'cool heads' to end dispute
The Great Indonesia Coalition also set up its own version of House internal bodies, despite the absence of any legal basis.
The protracted standoff has brought anxiety to other lawmakers.
Outspoken Democratic Party politician Ruhut Sitompul raised concerns about the lack of work during a plenary session earlier this week, which was attended by lawmakers from the Red-and-White Coalition.
'We have received our salary but we haven't done anything for the last month and five days. I beg all of us, please cool our heads. Can't the House leadership discuss the problem with our colleagues [from the Great Indonesia Coalition]?' Ruhut told the plenary session.
Musician-turned-lawmaker Anang Hermansyah of the National Mandate Party (PAN) also interrupted the session to speak his mind.
'My 15-year-old child keeps on asking, 'Dad, when are you going to actually work?',' Anang said.
As concerns grow, the standoff continues between the two camps.
On Thursday, dozens of lawmakers from political factions within the Great Indonesia Coalition fought over a meeting room for House Commission IX overseeing demographic affairs, health, manpower and transmigration, with a group of expert staff working for the Gerindra Party.
The incident occurred when the lawmakers planned on meeting in a room already occupied by the expert staff.
'Why are we treated differently? We are from the PKB, NasDem, Hanura and the PDI-P yet we lost out to one [political] faction,' Eem Marhamah Zulfa Hiz from the PKB complained.
