Anton Hermansyah, Bogor, West Java – Several regents have asked that the central government lift the moratorium on civil service recruitment, saying that they needed to recruit civil servants with specific skills, like in digital technology, to improve productivity.
The regents made their request during a meeting with President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on Thursday at the Bogor Palace in West Java.
Saifullah, the regent of Sidoajo in East Java, said that regional governments needed new employees to handle digital programs like the online single submission (OSS) system that the central government had launched.
He explained that most of the civil service corp were of the senior generation and could not manage the new technology.
"We need fresh minds to catch up with [the new] programs, but we cannot recruit new civil servants," he said after the meeting with Jokowi, referring to the moratorium on recruitment.
The moratorium came into effect on Jan 1, 2015 and is scheduled to end in 2019. The moratorium on recruiting new civil servants was also imposed from 2010 to 2011 during the administration of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY).
Jember Regent Faida said that three years after the moratorium was imposed, regional administrations were now facing a shortage in manpower. She added that her administration could start recruiting local talents once the central government agreed to lift the moratorium.
"The recruitment is now open to all, everyone can apply, but we want to make sure that local talents are given the chance to work in their hometowns," she said. (bbn)