Democracy is the least problematic system: VP

Jakarta. The 1945 Constitution (UUD 1945) has mandated the government to provide protection, welfare, and education for the people, and at the same time to play an active role for the world peace.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla stated this in a national symposium on “the reflection of constitutional practices and labors after the reform era” held at Gedung Nusantara IV of the House of Representatives (DPR) complex in Senayan, Jakarta.

The constitution, the Vice President added, was formulated based on the need of the era and thus it is very dynamic.

According to Mr Kalla, democracy is not the most perfect system, yet the country embraces the system as it is the least problematic.

What to do now, he continued, is to empower grass root aspiration so that the centralistic system would turn into a regional-autonomy based system.

Mr Kalla further said the national development planning can be controlled using regulations and laws, as stipulated in the National Mid Term Development Plan (RPJMN), replacing the former the official State Policy Guidelines (GBHN) applied by the preceding regimes.

Concluding his remarks, the Vice President underscored the importance of closely keeping and watching the development planning in order not to defy from the constitution.

“The Constitutional Court (MK) has performed very well in keeping every law not opposing the 1945 Constitution,” he said.

The former fifth Indonesian president Megawati Soekarnoputri, the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker Zulkifli Hasan, the head of the Indonesian Military (TNI) Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo, the National Police Chief Gen. Badrodin Haiti, the head of Supreme Court Hatta Ali, and former Indonesian Constitutional Court (MK) chairman Mahfud MD also attended the symposium.