Luhur Hertanto, Jakarta – Home affairs minister M. Ma’ruf has prohibited all of the staff in his department from living with a women or men as man and wife without being officially married. In addition to this, Ma’ruf has also asked his staff not to receive presents or gifts in any form which can reasonably be believed to be related to their work as civil servants.
This prohibition represents one part of a new set of rules to safeguard the morals and ethics of Echelon I level civil servants in the home affairs department. The rule is part of Home Affairs Ministry Instruction Number 7/2004 on Upholding the Working Principles of Home Affairs Department Officials dated October 27 as a means of spelling out the political contract of the United Indonesian Cabinet of recently installed President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
“Our ministry is the first to bring such a political contract into force for its Echelon level officials”, department spokesperson Ujang Sudirman told journalists at his offices on Jalan Merdeka Utara in Jakarta on Wednesday October 27.
As well as monitoring the morals and ethics of civil servants continued Sudirman, one of the aims of issuing the instruction is to maintain work discipline. Ten of the articles in the instruction are an effort to increase work ethics. One of them, is being ready, on the occasional orders of their superiors, to work for as long as 24 hours. This however is for the sake of the department, not the personal interests of government heads.
Other clauses cover prohibiting staff from levels IV/A and above from holding second jobs or being involved in other businesses. Those who want to be involved in such activities are required to obtain written permission from their immediate superiors.
Sudirman admitted that the instruction only covers department of home affairs staff but is spear-heading the governments efforts to provide services to the public. “We hope that it will not be long before governors issues such regulations their staff in the districts”, he added. (rif)
[Abridged translation by James Balowski.]
