OGP has a strategic value to speed up the creation of good governance in Indonesia."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Millions of voters in Indonesia will visit polling stations on July 9, 2014, to elect their new president who is expected to remain committed towards promoting the core principles of Open Government Partnership (OGP).

Launched in 2011, the OGP aims to provide an international platform for domestic reformers committed to making their governments more transparent, accountable, and receptive to the citizens.

OGP is an international organization promoting multilateral initiatives and seeking strong commitments from participating government institutions to promote transparency, increase civic participation, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to make the government more open, effective, and accountable.

Therefore, some non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who attended the OGP Asia Pacific Regional Conference on May 6 to 7, 2014, in Bali were hopeful that the next leader of Indonesia will follow President Yudhoyonos example of promoting the OGP initiative.

"OGP has a strategic value to speed up the creation of good governance in Indonesia," Mickael Hoelman of Tifa/Open Society Foundation remarked during the OGP Asia Pacific Regional Conference in Nusa Dua, Bali, on Wednesday.

The OGP Asia Pacific Regional Conference, the first in Asia since OGPs inception, served as a platform for countries and communities within the region to connect, share, and gain a greater understanding of the benefits and opportunities across open and good governance practices.

Hoelman and other NGOs, such as MediaLink and International NGO forum Indonesian Development called on the presidential candidates in the upcoming election to create good governance when elected into power.

In Hoelmans view, there is no political contract because he will let the people give their own judgments to the presidential candidates.

He opined that it will be a setback if the next government decides to opt out of the OGP because nobody will guarantee if the wheel of the government can run transparently or not.

Since its launch in 2011, OGP has grown from 8 to 64 countries where the government and civil society are working in tandem to develop and implement ambitious open government reforms.

Inaugurating the OGP Asia Pacific Regional Conference in Nusa Dua on Tuesday, President Yudhoyono reiterated that Indonesia supported the role of countries in the region to join the OGP movement.

The president also called on the Asia-Pacific countries to participate in the OGP movement, as currently only 10 countries from the region have taken part.

"We want more countries in the Asia-Pacific region to take part, so that the region can have a say in the movement," stressed President Yudhoyono.

The role of the Asia-Pacific region is important because the movements greatest strength lies in its function to facilitate exchange of ideas, learning, and experiences in good and open governance.

"I believe that this region has an important role in promoting OGP. I am sure that the Asia-Pacific region will be the engine of global growth. Together, we hope that the Asia-Pacific regions future will be prosperous, stable, dynamic, inclusive, and forging ahead," Yudhoyono emphasized.

Meanwhile, OGP Conference Steering Committee Chairman Kuntoro Mangkusubroto remarked that Indonesia supports openness in the Asia-Pacific region in a bid to establish good governance for the creation of regional cooperation.

"As organizers of the conference, Indonesia sees immense growth opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region. Good governance in the region is needed to build a more inclusive cooperation among the countries," stated Kuntoro.

President Yudhoyono, whose term ends in October 2014, called on all parties to support the candidate who wins the election.

"Together, let us support the next president by easing his or her tasks," President Yudhoyono remarked at a function to open the Assembly on the Preparation for National Development (Musrenbangnas) here last Wednesday.

Yudhoyono also expressed hope that the next government will seriously implement the development program for the next 5 to 10 years.

He reiterated that the next government should also learn from the experiences gained in the past decade. It should lay emphasis on strategic environmental development and dare to set a bigger goal to achieve.

"With unity, hard work, and Gods help, we hope Indonesia will attain even greater progress," the head of state noted.

On the occasion, Yudhoyono also bid farewell by saying that the Assembly on the Preparation for National Development was the last one that he will attend in his capacity as president.

"During the last 10 years of my government a lot of unpleasant things occurred for which I offer my greatest apology. It is my prayer that the next government will be much better and increasingly advanced with a lot of achievements," he emphasized.

Meanwhile, Vice President Boediono was also optimistic that the next government can endeavor "with all its might" to develop infrastructure in order to improve the nations economy as a means of equitable prosperity.

"Infrastructure is still a short-term constraint for the government to overcome social and poverty problems," the vice president stated here last Tuesday.

He noted that infrastructure development in various fields, including economy, social, and politics in the future, cannot be postponed, and therefore, it should top priority for the next government.
(Uu.O001/INE/KR-BSR/F001)

Reporter: Otniel
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2014