Akbar eyes Army chief for VP

Akbar eyes Army chief for VP

Kurniawan Hari and Fitri Wulandari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Golkar leader Akbar Tandjung is considering naming military chief
Gen. Endriartono Sutarto as his running mate in the July 5
election after talks with regional party leaders -- but he's not
showing his hand yet.

"Yes, his name (Endriartono) has come to mind. But, let's wait
for the convention result," Akbar said here on Monday.

Akbar's announcement follows the departure of noted Golkar
party member and former presidential candidate Jusuf Kalla, who
resigned from his cabinet post on Monday to become Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono's vice presidential candidate.

Golkar, the political machine of former president Soeharto,
will hold a convention on Tuesday (today) to elect the party's
candidate in the country's first ever direct presidential
election on July 5.

Five aspirants -- Akbar Tandjung; former TNI chief Gen. (ret)
Wiranto; media magnate Surya Paloh; businessman Aburizal Bakrie;
and former commander of the Army's Strategic Reserve Command
(Kostrad) Lt. Gen. Prabowo Subianto -- are competing for the
party's endorsement of their presidential bids.

Akbar said the name of Endriartono, the current TNI chief, was
also floated during his meeting with leaders of 15 Golkar
regental branches and provincial chapters on Sunday evening.

"Some regional leaders asked me to name Endriartono to be my
running mate. Of course, I'm seriously considering that," he
said.

There was no comment from Endriartono on whether he would take
the offer. He has said on several occasions the military must
stay neutral and keep its distance from politics.

Akbar is not the only presidential hopeful who is considering
someone with a military background as a running mate. Amien Rais,
leader of the National Mandate Party (PAN), has often raised
similar proposals.

Akbar said a potential pair-up with Endriartono could pose a
challenge to the Susilo-Jusuf team.

Susilo, himself a retired Army general, is the presidential
candidate of the newly established Democrat Party.

Meanwhile, Kalla officially tendered his resignation as
coordinating minister for the people's welfare in President
Megawati Soekarnoputri's Gotong Royong Cabinet on Monday.

"I thanked (the President) for entrusting the task to me. I
apologized that I had to resign from the Cabinet to run for the
vice presidential post," he said here on Monday.

Kalla said Megawati made little comment on his resignation
but thanked him for carrying out his task dutifully.

"She only smiled (on my resignation)," he said.

Kalla said Megawati's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
(PDI-P) had lobbied him to be her running mate but he chose to
run alongside Susilo, the former coordinating minister for
political and security affairs. Susilo resigned from his post in
early March.

"There was no formal talk, only lobbying through my
colleagues," he said.

Asked if he would mobilize Golkar supporters in East
Indonesia, Kalla, a successful businessman from Makassar, South
Sulawesi, refused to comment.

"Well, it's a campaign." he quipped.

Susilo and Kalla have topped surveys on presidential and vice
presidential choices respectively, but doubt remains about their
chances, as neither have solid political machinery behind them to
support their bids.

Kalla did not say who would replace him in Cabinet. The
Minister for National Education, Malik Fadjar, has been touted by
some pundits.

"It is the prerogative of the President," Kalla said.

State Secretary Bambang Kesowo did not confirm if Malik Fadjar
would be ad interim minister.

He said his office was preparing a presidential decree to
accept Kalla's resignation and another to appoint his
replacement.

The decree would not be made public yet, Bambang said.