ABRI to name candidates next year
JAKARTA (JP): Armed Forces Sociopolitical Affairs Chief Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid moved yesterday to end the debate over the Armed Forces' (ABRI) candidates for the presidency and vice presidency next year, saying the military had not yet recommended any names.
"We have not given any instructions as to who will be named as ABRI's presidential and vice-presidential candidates," Syarwan said yesterday.
Syarwan said nominations for presidential and vice presidential candidates should only be made during the general assembly of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in March next year.
"ABRI's stance on presidential and vice presidential candidates will be stated only by Armed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung and me," he said. "Any other sources should be ignored."
Syarwan was commenting on Monday's statement by Suparman Achmad, the chairman of the Armed Forces faction in the House of Representatives, who said that, like other factions, ABRI already had vice-presidential candidates.
"It would not be right if ABRI did not have a candidate. ABRI members themselves are also citizens," he said, but refused to give any names.
Yesterday, Minister of Defense and Security Edi Sudradjat contributed to the debate. He said that, with the general election only one and a half months away, the Armed Forces should have a candidate for the vice presidency.
"ABRI should have prepared its candidate but now is not yet the time to announce it. The candidate will be announced at the MPR general assembly," he said.
He declined to say whether the candidate would be a military figure or a civilian. "We will know whether the candidate is a military person or a civilian later. Not now," he was quoted by Antara as saying.
Edi did not rule out the possibility that there would be more than one candidate for the vice presidency.
Syarwan denied speculation that Suparman's statement was part of a political maneuver on the part of the Armed Forces before the May 29 general election.
He said the Armed Forces headquarters would only disclose its candidates to the new ABRI faction, namely those appointed after the general election. The current House ends its five-year term on Sept. 30.
Debate over the presidential nominations has been virtually settled as support for Soeharto's renomination is becoming more and more widespread. One of the most recent displays was announced last week when the Sulawesi Community for Harmony said it would ask the People's Consultative Assembly to reelect the 75-year-old President.
But the vice-presidential candidates debate remain a heated topic of discussion as several names have been publicly mentioned as strong contenders. They include State Minister of Research and Technology B.J. Habibie, State Minister of National Development Planning Ginandjar Kartasasmita, Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Hartono. (imn)