Akbar denies discussing corruption case with Megawati

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Megawati Soekarnoputri and House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung met discreetly on Saturday amid rising pressure on Akbar to resign after he was charged with corruption.

The talks immediately sparked speculation that Megawati and Akbar were seeking a compromise to deal with Akbar's alleged role in the misuse of Rp 40 billion from the National Logistics Agency (Bulog).

The meeting also raised questions as to whether it was ethical for the president to meet with a suspect whose legal process was already underway.

Former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid was strongly criticized by legislators for having met with Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, the son of ex-dictator Soeharto, during corruption proceedings in 1999. Tommy then disappeared after his request for pardon was denied/. He was captured late last year after a one- year manhunt.

Akbar, who is also chairman of the Golkar Party, on Sunday confirmed he had a dinner with President Megawati, also the chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), but denied the secret meeting discussed his status as a suspect.

"I appealed to Ibu Megawati to maintain cooperation between PDI Perjuangan and Golkar," Akbar said after a meeting with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Sunday.

Earlier on Friday the House's Golkar faction criticized Megawati's six-month old administration, highlighting increasing strains in the coalition government.

The first signs were detected early last week when the Attorney General's Office declared Akbar a suspect in the Bulog case. The move was endorsed by Megawati.

The criticisms by Golkar were its first maneuver against Megawati's government after Akbar was officially charged.

The criticisms ranged from Megawati's nepotistic appointment of her husband Taufik Kiemas as leader of a recent ministerial visit to China, to her inconsistent plans to raise fuel prices.

As her PDI Perjuangan won only 34 percent vote in the 1999 general elections, Megawati formed a rainbow cabinet for a stable government when she became president in July last year.

In the 500-member House, PDI Perjuangan has 153 seats, Golkar 120 seats, the United Development Party (PPP) 58 seats, and the National Awakening Party (PKB) 51 seats, while the National Mandate Party (PAN) secured 34 seats. The remaining seats are shared by seven other minor parties.

Akbar said the meeting achieved a mutual understanding on how to run the government.

The House speaker said criticism of the government was not aimed at its overthrow. It was just normal criticism that should be responded to accordingly, he said.

"Our criticism is based on constructive measures. It is not aimed at disgracing the president," Akbar said as quoted by Antara.

Meanwhile, political scientists said on Saturday that Golkar's threat to withdraw support for the government in retaliation for its insistence on bringing Akbar to court on corruption charges was a big joke.

Andi A. Mallarangeng and Azyumardi Azra said that Megawati's coalition government was strong enough to survive without Golkar's support.

Andi said that Golkar should have placed itself as an opposition party in the first place.

"In fact, what a democratic government needs is opposition, not coalition," Mallarangeng told The Jakarta Post.

Mallarangeng suggested that Megawati refuse all political compromise that may be offered by Golkar, and continue pushing for Akbar's trial.

Akbar is suspected of siphoning Rp 40 billion from Bulog to Golkar while he served as state/cabinet secretary in 1999. The case also threatens the very survival of Golkar for receiving funds exceeding the legal limit of Rp 150 million from a single source.

Golkar is reportedly also intensively lobbying other senior leaders of PDI Perjuangan as part of its effort to soften Megawati's stance on Akbar.

There have been unconfirmed reports that several Golkar executives have threatened to withdraw Golkar ministers from the cabinet should Megawati fail to defend Akbar.

Golkar has three of the 32 ministers in Megawati's cabinet: State Minister of Women Empowerment Sri Redjeki Soemaryoto, State Minister of Communications and Information Syamsul Mua'rif, and Coordinating Minister of People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla.

In a separate development, Azyumardi Azra, rector of the Jakarta-based State Institute of Islamic Studies (IAIN) Syarif Hidayatulah, said that Megawati would only give herself problems if she compromises with Akbar.

He added that one of her mandates is to eradicate Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism (KKN) and that the Akbar case was part it.

"Later, she will have to present her account of responsibility before the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR); if she fails to deal with the Akbar case, then what she would have to say?" he mused.

Azyumardi said that Golkar was overreacting by attacking the government's performance, saying that Akbar's case was a legal, not political one.

"In the future, more former, or serving, state officials will likely be taken to court for corruption -- and again, the government will have to do it, as it is mandated by the People's Consultative Assembly Decree No. VIII/1999 on combating KKN," Azyumardi told reporters during a book signing at Le Meridien Hotel in Central Jakarta.

Minister Syamsul Mu'arif of Golkar denied that the party had threatened to remove its ministers from the cabinet.

"It is true we recently met several executives of PDI Perjuangan such as (National Development Planning/Bappenas chief) Kwik Kian Gie and legislator Arifin Panigoro. But it was just a routine meeting. We did not make any political deals," Syamsul told the Post.