The President's dedication<\/p>\n
The economy of Indonesia is in a free-fall. Each day more and
\nmore Indonesians lose their jobs. Each day essential commodity
\nprices go higher and higher while the rupiah drops lower and
\nlower.<\/p>\n
The President at last appears in photos, looking too weakened
\nby age, by work, by discouragement and loneliness to work on the
\nnation's business. We read that instead he spent his Sunday
\ninspecting his favorite Harley Davidson motorcycle and enjoying
\nthe words of his parrot. What is wrong with this picture? Where
\nare the President's trusted advisors? Did they realize or did
\nthey intend for him to appear so out of touch with the worries of
\nordinary people by portraying him this way -- lost in reverie
\nwith expensive vehicles and pets and sad memories of Ibu Tien?<\/p>\n
Will those around him manipulate the nation's wearied father,
\ninsisting that he carry the burdens of state even when it is
\nobvious to all that he needs to rest? Will they let him sacrifice
\nhis own health and delay his country's economic recovery by
\nfailing to give him the advice he now needs and unconsciously may
\nwant to hear? \"Pak Harto, it is time.\" Time for him to serve as
\nan honored elder statesman, perhaps, but not to have to face the
\nordeals that await a president.<\/p>\n
Indonesians speak often these days about succession plans. In
\nfact, there is a very acceptable succession plan: the one that
\nthe Constitution enshrines. The Constitution provides that the
\npresident may be succeeded by either the vice president or by
\nsomeone elected to the presidency, depending on the timing of the
\npresident's surrender of office.<\/p>\n
Indonesia is a republic, not a monarchy. Unlike a monarch, the
\npresidency is not designed for lifetime service. President
\nSoeharto need not feel that he owes the country more than he has
\nalready given -- years of distinguished service and transforming
\nleadership. His finest final service might be to advise the vice
\npresident he astutely chose five years ago, whom he has since
\nthen carefully monitored.<\/p>\n
The President's sense of dedication may prevent him from
\ntaking the step to retire. Shouldn't those closest to him counsel
\nthe decision that his own dedicated spirit cannot yet give form
\nto: retirement from office now, for the sake of his own health
\nand that of the uncertain economy.<\/p>\n
Are there those who, perhaps hoping to dominate Indonesia's
\nfuture, badger a tired president with advice about who should be
\nthe next vice president? Are there those pleading with the
\nPresident to hold on until March for this reason, until he yields
\nto a vice presidential choice not of his own but of theirs, a
\nchoice made more in resignation than from conviction? In these
\nnext crucial months, the country needs a full-time, energetic
\npresident.<\/p>\n
The President needs rest. But without a longer and fuller
\nrest, can the President's health hold out, so that he might
\nindeed serve as a guide for the next president? Can President
\nSoeharto truly rest so long as he holds the office of President,
\nknowing that the country's crises cry out for attention? Who are
\nPresident Soeharto's closest advisors now (and who are their
\nadvisors), and do they care enough about the President's welfare
\nand the country's, to suggest the unspeakable -- a speedy
\nsuccession?<\/p>\n
There is a prayer called Nunc Dimittis which was prayed by a
\npriest named Simeon when he realized that his years of loyal
\ntemple service were fulfilled. It is found in the Gospel of
\nLuke.<\/p>\n
DONNA K. WOODWARD<\/p>\n
Medan, North Sumatra<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/the-presidents-dedication-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }