President puts House rift behind<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid put his
\novernight quarrel with House of Representatives (DPR) over his
\nalleged graft behind him as he invited legislators on Tuesday to
\na post-Idul Fitri gathering this weekend, two days before they
\nare scheduled to announce their findings.<\/p>\n
"The President has asked me to announce that the DPR members
\nare invited to a post-holiday gathering here on Saturday,"
\npresidential spokesman Wimar Witoelar told reporters.<\/p>\n
"The President considers that they (the legislators) all are
\nhis friends and brothers."<\/p>\n
Muslims in Indonesia traditionally hold a get-together to
\nexpress their forgiveness for each other, after celebrating Idul
\nFitri with their own families.<\/p>\n
Wimar was quick to add that the reception had nothing to do
\nwith Monday's hearing at the Jakarta Convention Center, saying
\nthat "the gathering has been scheduled for a while".<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman's abrupt decision to leave the hearing enraged
\nmembers of the House special committee with some of them
\nsuggesting that the President was impolite.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman defended his action saying that the committee was
\nillegal and that it could not provide an answer on Monday as to
\nwhether it was a political or legal forum.<\/p>\n
The committee is seeking to question Abdurrahman about the
\nfraudulent withdrawal of Rp 35 billion (US$ 3.3 million) from the
\nState Logistics Agency (Bulog) by his masseur and the fate of a
\nUS$2 million donation from the Sultan of Brunei, which the
\nPresident claims was a personal gift.<\/p>\n
The committee is scheduled to complete its investigation on
\nThursday and reveal its findings to the public on Jan. 29.<\/p>\n
Wimar said on Tuesday that Abdurrahman "holds no grudges"
\nagainst the committee members.<\/p>\n
He could not say, however, whether Abdurrahman had invited all
\n500 members of the DPR, saying only that the invitation was "not
\njust for DPR leaders".<\/p>\n
Previous governments also followed the practice.<\/p>\n
When opening a pencak silat martial arts congress later in the
\nday, Gus Dur played down the controversy between his government
\nand the DPR, and instead asked for better cooperation between the
\ntwo sides.<\/p>\n
He said the government and the legislature differed only in
\ntheir interpretation of the constitution.<\/p>\n
"We maintain the use of the principle of caution and the
\ncourage to say what is right," he said.<\/p>\n
"The government is taking the stance of defending what is
\ncontained in the 1945 constitution and does not care who it will
\nhave to face," he added.<\/p>\n
Separately, the chairman of the House's special committee
\ninvestigating the two financial scandals, Bachtiar Chamsyah, said
\nGus Dur was the last witness to be heard after months of probe.<\/p>\n
He said the committee was intensifying discussions in order to
\ncomplete the investigation on time.<\/p>\n
The committee's deputy chairman Didi Supriyanto said his team
\nwas comparing its findings and the relevant documents. He added
\nthat the committee would come up with a simple conclusion in
\norder to avoid prolonged debate when it is presented to the House
\nplenary session on Monday.<\/p>\n
Several reliable sources on the special committee told The
\nJakarta Post on Tuesday that the committee would come to the
\nconclusion that the President was involved in the two scandals,
\nabused his power and told lies.<\/p>\n
The President has denied his involvement in the disbursement
\nof Rp 35 billion from the Bulog foundation while several
\nwitnesses have testified to the President's knowledge of the
\nfunds' disbursement.<\/p>\n
Separately, the National Awakening Party (PKB) faction in the
\nHouse of Representatives called on the special committee to
\nunveil an objective report on its investigations in order to
\navoid heightened political tension in the city.<\/p>\n
"The present attempt by the special committee to reach a
\nconclusion that will discredit President Abdurrahman Wahid and
\nhis government will raise new political tension and cause a high
\nsocial cost that we will have to pay in the transition period
\ntoward a democracy," Taufikurrahman Saleh, chairman of the PKB
\nfaction, told a press conference here on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Taufikurrahman said his faction would likely walk out of the
\nplenary session if the special committee concludes that the
\nPresident is involved in the scandals.<\/p>\n
"The special committee is established to seek the truth and
\nnot to try the President," he said.<\/p>\n
He implied that thousands of Nadlatul Ulama-affiliated Banser
\ncivilian guards and members of the Ansor youth organization from
\noutside Jakarta would throng the House compound to counter
\nantigovernment demonstrations during the plenary session on
\nMonday.<\/p>\n
"Our faction is against any mass mobilization and we have
\nprohibited Banser members to come to Jakarta. But, they will
\nlikely force their way to Jakarta anyway," he said. (byg\/rms)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/president-puts-house-rift-behind-1447893297",
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