MORATORIUM NEEDED ON FORMATION OF NEW REGIONS : PRESIDENT

Jakarta, Aug 3 (ANTARA) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said a moratorium needed to be imposed on the formation of new administrative regions to ensure that regional powers, potentials and finances are managed well and by competent officials.

"Before an evaluation is made in a complete and comprehensive manner, we need to impose a moratorium on the formation of new administrative regions," the president said in his state-of-the nation address on the 2010 Draft State Budget and Financial Note before an extraordinary plenary session of the House of Representatives (DPR) here on Monday.

He said the government needed to do it to prevent inappropriate wastages and squandering of state funding resources that would distance the people from their expectation of enjoying equitable distribution of services and welfare.

He said in the last ten years a total of 205 newly-formed autonomous regions, comprising 7 seven provinces, 164 districts and 34 municipalities had been formed in Indonesia.

"The number of existing autonomous regions up to now is 524, covering 33 provinces, 398 districts and 92 municipalities. With the decentralization and regional autonomy, most government powers have been handed over to the regions, be it provincial, district or municipal governments," Yudhoyono said.

The president said the creation of new regions which did not meet the urgency and administrative requirements, as well as lacking the financial support, would definitely pose a burden to the state finances.

He said state finances, which should have been spent on the people's welfare, would be shifted to finance the administrative needs of the new regional governments.

"This is the reason that we need to consistently and seriously evaluate the organization of the regional governments, as mandated by Government Regulation Number 6, 2008," the head of state said.

He said the government also had to ensure that the regional powers, potentials and finances, are managed well by competent and professional regional government officials (good governance and clean government).