Anita Rachman – Six artists propped up artworks depicting politics and public toilets against the security fence of the House of Representatives on Wednesday morning in protest to the plan to build a new House office tower.

The artists – including Hardi, Odji Lirungan, Kasimanli, Yahya, Ridwan, and Willy – went to the House with Sebastian Salang from Formappi and Ray Rangkuti from LIMA.

The artists finished painting canvases with the theme of public toilets to make a statement that politics in the House of Representatives were as "dirty as public toilets across Jakarta".

"We invite all the people to come here to defecate here," Odji Lirungan said. "I am sorry I have to use rude words, but they never listen. Artists are very disappointed with their plan to construct a new building and their trips overseas."

Odji said that people were working very hard to meet their needs and pay taxes, but the so-called representatives were wasting them for fun. He said that if lawmakers were serious about working on a poverty law, they should have gone to bridges across Jakarta and checked poor people under them, instead of going to Australia.

Sebastian Salang said that artists had their own way of criticizing the expensive plan to build a new tower.

While people in the regional areas still suffered from bad infrastructure such as irrigation and roads, their representatives were spending money for trips and new office, he added.

"In our discussion, they said they want to tell people through their paintings that today's politics is as dirty as public toilets across Jakarta."

Hardi said that the House's new building plan and their trips abroad were just two examples of dirty politics. He said that House members had soiled themselves with many controversial plans that do not represent their constituents' interests.

"Pak SBY [ President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono] can paint, so he should understand the meaning behind our paintings," he said. Yudhoyono's party the Democrats also supports the proposed House tower.