Arientha Primanita – The National Bureaucracy Reform Team on Monday said that the government should enact a moratorium on recruiting new civil servants.

"We have suggested to the vice president that openings for civil servant candidates should be halted for six months," said Erry Riyana Hardjapamekas, the head of the team, at the Vice Presidential Palace. "Within that time, we will be able to study if hiring is necessary."

The team will conduct a study to find the best mechanism for hiring civil servants. Erry said that the moratorium would be aimed at improving the system and to avoid unqualified workers holding positions in state institutions.

He said that the team believed that the high rate of recruitment was putting burdening the state's finances. "The quantity of public servants is not always equivalent to the efficiency of public service," he said.

The team, Erry said, suggested that the government thoroughly evaluate the organizational structures of central and regional government institutions.

Finance Minister Agus Martowardoyo recently said that the number of civil servants, at 4.7 million, was too high and that it was burdening state and regional budgets.

Last week, the Finance Ministry said that they would conduct a productivity study to determine whether civil servants should be granted early retirement or a golden handshake.