A Golkar ticket for Habibie

A Golkar ticket for Habibie

The possible repercussions (of Habibie being named presidential candidate) have naturally been well considered by Golkar's leaders. Obviously, they must have pondered all the pros and cons of their decision. We must respect that decision as an internal matter of Golkar, since it is Golkar that will bear the consequences of the move.

But is Habibie in fact the best candidate to be president for the coming five years? This is a most intriguing question. His performance over the past year has indeed not been too bad. He opened a broad enough corridor for the public, including the press, to participate and express their aspirations. He also displayed a flexible stance and has not turned the office of the presidency into a sacrosanct and inviolable edifice.

Still, Habibie has many shortcomings. Many people have even given him low grades for his performance. Most notable has been his slow reaction to public demands to bring former president Soeharto to trial, eradicate the practices of corruption, collusion and nepotism, and uncover a series of human rights violations.

Many questions remain difficult to answer. These, only Habibie can explain. But we are entitled to demand such explanations because, assuming he is elected president, he would no longer be a mere leader of Golkar. Rather, he would be the leader, and the father, of the nation. It would be demanded of him that he be capable of conquering the sectarian bounds that divide the nation and satisfy the aspirations of the community as a whole.

Of course, we still have to await the outcome of next month's general election. We must, however, emphasize once again the people's demands for better management of state affairs, for cleaner governance, democracy and justice. These demands will not vanish after the elections are over. On the contrary, they will continue to swell and surge, and crush anyone who should try to stem the tide.

-- Bisnis Indonesia, Jakarta