Akbar calls for political deal

Akbar calls for political deal

JAKARTA (JP): With political rivals deadlocked over the
proposition of impeaching President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid,
House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung urged his
colleagues to seek a compromise by outlining a more vivid power-
sharing scheme between the President and Vice President Megawati
Soekarnoputri.

"The sharing of power between the President and Vice President
is a plausible compromise to end the political deadlock between
the House and the President," Akbar said after a meeting of the
Golkar Party faction here on Thursday.

Akbar, who is also Golkar's chairman, noted that with the
escalation of controversy surrounding the Bulog and Brunei
scandals "most factions want the President to step down, while
Gus Dur pleads his innocence."

He suggested that, under such a compromise, pending
Abdurrahman's agreement, the President would only handle state
affairs, while the Vice President acquire full authority in
tackling administrative affairs.

"I have no other alternative solutions should the President
turn down such a compromise," he remarked, while confidently
suggesting that such an arrangement would be acceptable to most
House factions, including Golkar.

Any suggestions of a People's Consultative Assembly special
session, according to Akbar, should not concentrate on
impeachment, but on hammering out a decree to structure the
power-sharing arrangement.

Abdurrahman issued a presidential decree last year delegating
the daily running of government to Megawati, however this
arrangement has been ambiguous and unsatisfactory according to
legislators.

Calls for an Assembly special session have increased following
an unfavorable reaction to the President's response on Wednesday
to the first House memorandum of censure.

Akbar said an Assembly decree outlining the compromise could
be proposed during the Assembly's annual session in August.

He added that most House factions are already preparing for
the issuance of a second memorandum, advancing the possibility of
a special session and impeachment proceedings.

Unfit

Akbar further revealed that the House leadership would receive
a medical team on Monday to hear their report on the President's
health condition.

"We have received a letter from the four-member presidential
medical team recently," he said.

Copies of a letter from the medical team, which was circulated
at the House, suggest that, from a medical perspective,
Abdurrahman is no longer fit to carry out his presidential
duties.

The team consists of neurologist Soeharko Kasran, oculist
Rahman R. Saman, physician Hadiwitarto and psychiatrist Suryanto.

While Akbar was preaching compromise, Assembly speaker Amien
Rais remained defiant, rebuffing any suggestion of a political
concession.

"Any form of political compromise would only prolong the
problem and add to the uncertainty," Amien told journalists.

Assembly deputy chairman Matori Abdul Djalil, a loyal
supporter of the President, hailed a possible compromise.

"A compromise should start with a willingness to sit together
and discuss the problems. Afterwards, all elites can decide what
kind of compromise (should be adopted)," Matori said.

Minister of Defense Mahfud M.D. also suggested on Thursday a
political compromise between the President and legislature.

"My proposal is that the President sit down with the political
elite for talks, determining a platform on which the country will
be led," he remarked.

Meanwhile in Makassar, South Sulawesi, political
communications expert Hasrullah of Hasanuddin University said
that, whatever reply the President could have given on Wednesday
would have been hard to accept by legislators.

"The House would not believe him," Hasrullah said.

"I am of the opinion that the House and the President will
find it hard to reconcile. The minds of legislators are already
filled with suspicion, prejudice and negative thoughts," he told
The Jakarta Post.

"From a political communications point of view the President's
apology should be translated as a gesture from the President to
seek reconciliation with the House."

Meanwhile, cultural and political observer Mohammad Sobary
here on Wednesday urged political elites to stop their rivalry.

"Both Abdurrahman Wahid and Amien Rais as well as other
political elites are trapped in a political play, forgetting
about the people's interests.

"They've gone too far...and are engaged in these political
maneuvers only to maintain power," Sobary said.

He called for a "return" to their respective roles and help
bridge the communication gap between them.

"Let Abdurrahman lead until 2004, finish his term and then we
can choose our future leader. As for Megawati, I think she is
ready in a way that she always sticks to the concept of national
unity and integration. She is sometimes naive but basically I
believe that she can rule well," he added.
(02/27/sur/edt/rms/dja)