Jakarta – Scholars and analysts agreed during a discussion Friday that legislators and government officials needed to stop working solely for party interests and focus more on the needs of the people who voted them into office.

Legislators, political parties and government officials often face widespread criticism for policies they endorse that are claimed to be "insensitive" to the people.

Cultural observer Franky Sahilatua said the people's representatives often produced policies that impoverished the electorate even more.

"The soaring fuel price has diminished the people's hope," he said. He said that the price hike had increased the number of impoverished and unemployed people.

More than 10 percent of Indonesia's 220 million people are unemployed, while 20 percent earn less than US$2 a day, official statistics show.

Legislator Permadi, a member of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, and Golkar Party legislator Agun Gunanjar agreed that many elected representatives and officials needed to favor the people more and revamp the system for electing politicians to the House of Representatives.

Agun suggested that the law on political parties be improved so that the candidates contesting the next general elections, to be held in 2009, would function as "real representatives".

"Should representatives be on the people's side, nothing like the fuel price increase and rice importation would happen," said Permadi. "The flaw is that the law (on political parties) authorizes parties to back their chosen members to sit in the House. Therefore, they strive for the sake of their parties, not for the people," he added.

Meanwhile, Drajad Wibowo, a legislator from the National Mandate Party, said: "Observation of the members of the House in their functions as lawmakers, budget planners and watchdogs in relation to government policy, will tell us whether they are really working for the people or not."

Political expert Arbi Sanit said the general elections system needed to be fixed. "Political parties should design a framework for those recruited so as to create the best candidates," he said.

The "fit and proper" tests to select the president, he added, should also be made more relevant to the duties he or she might conduct.

He also criticized current legislators and the government, as well as the Cabinet, for not working efficiently and effectively, saying that many legislative processes had been delayed.

Golkar Party legislator Priyo Budi Santoso and Syarief Hasan, a legislator from the Democrat Party, however, said they had been trying to work for the people. "If we are not fully serving the people, at least we are still on the track of moving toward that," said Syarief.