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year after assuming the North Jakarta mayoral post, Heru Budi Hartono hopes that the open recruitment system introduced last month will be his opportunity to take on a more challenging post in the city administration.

'I have been mayor for a year. I think it's time to try another post. But as a Javanese man, I can't be too blunt about which post I want. It's all up to Pak Ahok,' Heru said, referring to his boss, Deputy Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama.

Over the past year, Heru has divided his time between the North Jakarta mayor's office and City Hall, as he has remained as the acting gubernatorial and foreign affairs bureau chief. The 48-year-old has spent 19 years working in various posts in the North Jakarta mayor's office.

'Mayors are more popular among residents, but actually they don't have the power they need to address problems in their areas. Residents rely on mayors, whereas mayors rely on unit heads. For example, the authority to fix damaged roads lies not with mayors, but with the head of the Public Works Agency. So we basically just coordinate unit heads,' Heru said when asked about the challenges he had faced.

He revealed that he had been offered strategic posts by the deputy governor in the past, an opportunity which he had declined.

'I didn't want to end up in a comfort zone because I still have 12 years to go as a civil servant before retiring,' he explained.

Heru was among dozens of top-level officials in the city administration ' mostly agency heads and mayors ' who over the weekend underwent a series of tests as part of the open recruitment system to select the best men to fill top- to mid-level posts. They were given the opportunity to aim for higher-level posts, but if their results were unsatisfactory, they could equally be demoted or even lose their jobs.

The fact that hundreds of mid- to top-level jobs are being axed to streamline the administration might have haunted the open-recruitment participants.

'Those who underwent the tests with me looked very intense. I don't understand why,' said Family Planning, Residents and Women's Empowerment Agency head Deded Sukendar after the tests.

The process included interviews with an independent team of psychologists from top universities, a focus group discussion and presentation of the officials' visions and work plans.

Deded acknowledged that he had had no time to prepare for the tests.

'To be honest, I was quite busy with my working targets so I didn't really have time to prepare for the tests,' he said, declining to reveal which post he was aiming for.

But for Cooperatives, Small and Medium Enterprises and Trade Agency head Joko Kundaryo, the goal was just to stay in his current job.

'I have been in my post for a year. I still have a lot to do, including sorting out street vendors,' he said, adding that he was determined to work faster and more scrupulously in the future.

He also described the series of tests as 'standard'.

Some officials were keen to stress their strengths. I Made Karmayoga, who manages human resources as the Employment Agency head, said: 'I wanted to be fair. I asked for interviewers whom I have never met before.'

Karmayoga revealed that he had focused on bureaucratic reform and administration issues during the tests, as it is this area he understands the best.

'Bureaucracy has a notorious image as something that disrupts development and is not transparent. I focused on what can I contribute [to address these issues],' he said.