Habibie may take power if Soeharto steps down<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Vice President B.J. Habibie will succeed
\nPresident Soeharto if the latter resigns as requested by House
\nSpeaker Harmoko yesterday, a constitutional law expert said.<\/p>\n
Yusril Ihza Mahendra from University of Indonesia in Jakarta
\nsaid that if Soeharto agreed to voluntarily step down, then there
\nwas no need for Harmoko to call an extraordinary session of the
\nPeople's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to elect a successor.<\/p>\n
While no one doubted the fine points of the constitution, some
\nexperts said the political condition is such that the country
\nshould be looking at alternative candidates to succeed Soeharto.<\/p>\n
\"President Soeharto needs only to tender his letter of
\nresignation to the MPR leaders,\" Yusril said.<\/p>\n
Vice President B.J. Habibie will automatically become the new
\npresident, he said, citing Article 8 of the 1945 Constitution
\nwhich stipulates that the vice president will become president,
\nif the latter becomes incapacitated, and complete the remainder
\nof the five year term in office.<\/p>\n
An extraordinary session of the MPR could still be called, if
\nthe new president or the MPR felt it necessary, in order to elect
\na new vice president, he said, pointing out that this mechanism
\nwas stipulated in a 1973 MPR decree.<\/p>\n
Yusril said any changes in the national leadership, including
\nthe resignation of the President and the appointment of his
\nsuccessor, must be done in accordance with the constitution.<\/p>\n
Ismail Hasan Metareum, deputy house speaker from the United
\nDevelopment Party (PPP) faction, agreed that Habibie would take
\nover if Soeharto stepped down.<\/p>\n
\"We don't have to hold an MPR session to discuss Soeharto's
\nresignation because the vice president will take over,\" Ismail, a
\nseasoned politician with a legal background, said.<\/p>\n
Soeharto and Habibie were both elected to their posts by the
\nMPR during its quinquennial general session in March. Both stood
\nunopposed in the elections.<\/p>\n
Legal expert Todung Mulya Lubis said that although under the
\nConstitution Habibie should become president, the magnitude of
\nthe present crisis justified looking elsewhere for another
\ncandidate.<\/p>\n
\"The multidimensional crisis the country is facing has led to
\na force majeur condition, that the article on succession in the
\nConstitution becomes irrelevant,\" Lubis said.<\/p>\n
\"What we need now is a collective national leadership which
\ncan accommodate the aspirations of the people,\" he said, adding
\nthat the country's new leadership would likely arise through
\nnegotiations between the various political forces.<\/p>\n
This should be an interim \"national collective leadership\"
\nwhich must solve the economic crisis and prepare for a general
\nelection and the development of democracy in the country, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Satya Arinanto, another constitutional law expert from the
\nUniversity of Indonesia, said that although constitutionally
\nHabibie will succeed Soeharto, there is the problem whether or
\nnot Habibie is acceptable to the people.<\/p>\n
\"There is also the question of whether or not Habibie has the
\ncapacity to overcome the crisis,\" Satya said.<\/p>\n
Alternatively, a triumvirate comprising the foreign minister,
\nhome affairs minister and defense and security minister could be
\nappointed as caretakers for one month until the MPR meets to
\nelect a new president and vice president, he said.<\/p>\n
Satya also pointed out at a 1978 MPR decree requiring the
\nHouse of Representatives to serve two notices on the President
\nquestioning his policies first before it can call for an
\nextraordinary session of the MPR.<\/p>\n
If the President fails to respond to the two memorandums, only
\nthen can the MPR convene a meeting, he said.<\/p>\n
He added however that constitutionally, the House can bypass
\nthis procedure and directly ask the MPR to convene.<\/p>\n
Another constitutional expert, Andi Muis of Hasanuddin
\nUniversity in Ujungpandang, did not think that Habibie would
\nautomatically become vice president.<\/p>\n
Andi said the nation did not necessarily have to accept
\nHabibie as the new president, and that the MPR should convene an
\nextraordinary meeting to elect a successor, even if Soeharto
\nresigned.<\/p>\n
Habibie has not proven himself as a statesman, Andi said. \"He
\nmay have been a successful technocrat, but not so as a
\nstatesman,\" he said of the former state minister for research and
\ntechnology.<\/p>\n
The presidential post should be left open for competition to
\nthose who feel they have the capability to lead, he said.<\/p>\n
Andi cited Amien Rais, chairman of the Muhammadiyah Moslem
\norganization, and Megawati Soekarnoputri, daughter of former
\npresident Sukarno and ousted leader of the Indonesian Democratic
\nParty, as the best candidates for the post.<\/p>\n
\"If we want someone older, Emil Salim is the one,\" he said
\nreferring to the senior economist and former environmental
\nminister.<\/p>\n
Andi said an extraordinary MPR session was still necessary to
\nexamine Soeharto's accountability.<\/p>\n
He said that it should not be too difficult for the Assembly
\nto hold an extraordinary session. \"It doesn't cost too much money
\nand it doesn't take that long to prepare.\"<\/p>\n
\"An appropriate date for the meeting is June 1,\" Andi said,
\nreferring to the still widely disputed date appointed as the
\nanniversary of the conception of Pancasila, the state ideology.
\n(imn\/aan\/ivy)<\/p>",
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