Akbar denies conspiracy to topple government

Akbar denies conspiracy to topple government

JAKARTA (JP): House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung
denied on Monday there was a political conspiracy to discredit
the "axis force" coalition of political parties and President
Abdurrahman Wahid.

Akbar, who is also Golkar Party chairman, acknowledged there
was criticism of the government from all sides, but he said it
was normal as part of the effort to uphold checks and balances.

"The fact that many people, including senior ulemas, have
criticized the President and his policies is absolutely normal in
a democracy. Not only the House, but the Golkar Party will be
critical of the government. Such criticism should not be seen as
a political conspiracy to discredit the President," he said after
a House plenary session here on Monday.

Akbar was commenting on a statement by Minister of the
Empowerment of Women Khofifah Indar Parawansa, who claimed there
was a conspiracy involving several politicians to topple
Abdurrahman's government by pitting him against the axis force, a
loose affiliation of Muslim-based parties which nominated
Abdurrahman for the presidency.

Rifts were detected in Abdurrahman's relationship with the
axis force following the resignation of Coordinating Minister for
People's Welfare and Poverty Eradication Hamzah Haz, who chairs
the United Development Party, the biggest member of the axis
force.

Akbar said it would not be easy to topple the President,
except through illegal means, such as violating the Constitution
and the State Policy Guidelines.

During the plenary session, Tosari Wijaya was sworn in as
deputy House speaker representing PPP in place of Hamzah, who
relinquished his legislative post after being appointed to the
Cabinet.

Separately, Ismail Hasan Metareum, chairman of PPP's advisory
council, echoed suspicions that a particular group was trying to
weaken the axis and discredit the government.

"I feel a certain group is trying to undermine the axis force.
It is trying to cripple the axis force and Muslim parties,"
Ismail said on the sidelines of the party's leadership meeting.

He said the "attack" on the axis force could be seen from a
protest recently submitted by the Indonesian Democratic Party of
Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) over National Mandate Party chairman
and People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien Rais' statement
on federalism.

Ismail said he believed the attack against the axis force was
conducted by certain members of PDI Perjuangan, but was not a
concerted policy of the party.

PPP executive Zarkasih Nur, who is also state minister of
cooperatives, small and medium enterprises, played down the
alleged attack against the government and axis force.

"I often hold different opinions than my friends. I don't see
any attacks from other parties against the axis force," Zarkasih
said in the party's executive meeting on Monday.

He claimed he was close to ministers from PDI Perjuangan.

Commenting on Hamzah's resignation from the Cabinet, Zarkasih
said the President should give two more ministerial positions to
PPP if he proceeded with his plan to remove three ministers for
alleged past corruption.

"PPP should deserve at least two positions in the Cabinet
because it gained more than 40 House seats in the June general
election," Zarkasih said.

He said PPP secretary-general Ali Marwan Hanan and Tosari fit
the bill for ministerial jobs. (jun/rms)