Veteran actor Pong Harjatmo made another appearance at the House of Representatives on Monday, this time minus a can of spray paint.
Pong, who made headlines and won fans throughout Indonesia after spraying the words “Adil, Jujur, Tegas” (“Fair, Honest, Firm”) on the roof of the House, also known as the DPR, said he wanted to wish the House a happy 65th anniversary.
The House is perceived to be one of Indonesia’s most corruption institutions, with legislators having only passed seven pieces of legislation since being elected to office last year.
The actor-cum-activist handed House Deputy Speaker Pramono Anung from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) flowers and a white kentongan bamboo drum inscribed with “Adil, Jujur, Tegas.”
He said the House could use the kentongan, traditionally used to alert communities to danger, to “warn” lawmakers that they were drifting off to sleep when they were supposed to be deliberating legislation.
The flowers, he said, represented the people because he had purchased them from local vendors.
Pramono acknowledged that he was aware the House was yet to meet the public’s expectations.
“The House needs to be criticized and monitored so that they will never cross the line,” Pramono said.
The deputy speaker, however, dodged a question about the continuing poor attendance records of legislators in the House, saying the matter was beyond the authority of House leaders.
That responsibility, he said, fell to the House Ethics Council and the respective political parties in the DPR.
House Speaker Marzuki Alie marked the anniversary with a speech in the DPR, also admitting that people were critical of the DPR’s performance.
Less than half of the legislators, however, turned up to hear what he had to say.
The House is perceived to be one of Indonesia’s most corruption institutions, with legislators having only passed seven pieces of legislation since being elected to office last year.
The actor-cum-activist handed House Deputy Speaker Pramono Anung from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) flowers and a white kentongan bamboo drum inscribed with “Adil, Jujur, Tegas.”
He said the House could use the kentongan, traditionally used to alert communities to danger, to “warn” lawmakers that they were drifting off to sleep when they were supposed to be deliberating legislation.
The flowers, he said, represented the people because he had purchased them from local vendors.
Pramono acknowledged that he was aware the House was yet to meet the public’s expectations.
“The House needs to be criticized and monitored so that they will never cross the line,” Pramono said.
The deputy speaker, however, dodged a question about the continuing poor attendance records of legislators in the House, saying the matter was beyond the authority of House leaders.
That responsibility, he said, fell to the House Ethics Council and the respective political parties in the DPR.
House Speaker Marzuki Alie marked the anniversary with a speech in the DPR, also admitting that people were critical of the DPR’s performance.
Less than half of the legislators, however, turned up to hear what he had to say.
