Anita Rachman – The Regional Representatives Council has begun lobbying political parties to support amending the 1945 Constitution, a council member said on Wednesday.

Proposed changes outlined in a draft recently completed by the council, also known as the DPD, included curtailing the executive branch of the government's role in legislation, providing the DPD with the power to impeach the head of state, and allowing independent candidates not supported by political parties to run in presidential elections.

Bambang Soeroso, a DPD member and head of the special drafting team, said the council had commenced discussions with the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) and was ready to approach other parties in the House of Representatives (DPR).

Bambang said all 132 members of the DPD had signed the draft proposal, but it still requires the signatures of at least one-third of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which is made of the DPD and lawmakers at the House, to begin debate on the proposal.

"We have scheduled meetings with the National Awakening Party [PKB], Golkar Party and the Democratic Party," he said.

The proposal for the fifth Constitutional amendment was completed in February, after four years of discussion by the DPD.

Fajrul Falaakh, a member of the National Law Commission (KHN), predicted the DPD's draft would find support among lawmakers at the House. "It depends on how they lobby the factions in the House," Fajrul said. "The DPD has many options on offer; let's see which is chosen by the House."

He said that while some points in the proposed amendment might receive negative feedback from certain House factions, such as opening the door to independent candidates, other points were likely to be well received, such as the proposal to cut the government's power to legislate.

Fajrul said that bills were often stalled due to government resistance. With only lawmakers and the DPD deliberating bills, lawmakers may increase their productivity, he said. The House has often come under intense public criticism over what is perceived as poor performance in making laws.

The DPD argued that the president and his administrators were the executors of the law, "so they should not deliberate bills."

"Both the DPD and the House of Representatives should be involved in lawmaking. However, the president will still be given the right to propose and veto bills," Bambang said. Bambang added that giving greater authority to the DPD was warranted, arguing that "it would be a waste for DPD not to be [more] involved in legislation."

Nurul Arifin, the Golkar Party's deputy secretary general, said the party had yet to give an official response on the proposal, but added that it was not a high priority for the party.

Nurul said she believed that in general, there would be resistance at the House toward the DPD proposal, but did not elaborate on the matter. She only cited the proposal to open electoral candidacy to independent candidates.