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