Akbar Tandjung set for presidential nomination

Akbar Tandjung set for presidential nomination

JAKARTA (JP): Golkar Party chairman Akbar Tandjung said on
Monday that he was ready for the presidential race in 2004.

But like many other politicians who refrain from
outspokenness, Akbar played down his candidacy, saying it was too
early to discuss the issue.

"When the time comes, I will think about it. But for now it's
not the right time to talk about the nomination," Akbar, who is
also the House of Representatives speaker, said.

He said the presidential nomination was not discussed at the
party's plenary meeting, which ended on Friday night. The party
will concentrate on internal consolidation to face the next
general election, also in 2004, Akbar said.

He said the nomination would only be given to the floor after
the party identified and unified its supporters.

A Golkar legislator, Ferry Mursyidan Baldan, agreed that
Akbar's nomination was not an urgent matter, since it would take
place after the general election.

"Like us, other political parties, such as the Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle and the National Mandate Party, have
not officially nominated their chairpersons Megawati
Soekarnoputri and Amien Rais respectively for presidency," Ferry,
who is a former chairman of the Indonesian Muslim Student
Association, said.

Golkar legislator Yasril Ananta Baharuddin said on Sunday that
the party's leadership meeting scheduled to be held in July was
expected to decide on Akbar's nomination for presidency.

Yasril said Akbar would be nominated for the presidency since
the party's plenary meeting agreed to elect a new chairman after
the next general election.

Not all Golkar members support Akbar's nomination. La Ode
Djeni, a Golkar legislator representing Southeast Sulawesi,
opposed Akbar's presidential bid.

"It's too early to nominate Akbar. If it's only a discourse I
can agree with it," Djeni, who is known as a key figure in a
rival faction in the party popularly called caucus Iramasuka --
an acronym for Irian Jaya, Nusa Tenggara, Maluku, Sulawesi and
Kalimantan.

Instead, Djeni suggested several names, such as former
manpower minister Fahmi Idris, former justice minister Muladi,
former sport and youth affairs minister Agung Laksono and Golkar
deputy chairman Marwah Daud Ibrahim.

"We, in the Iramasuka group, supported Marwah. She never
announced that she resigned from the party," Djeni said.

Earlier, Golkar Party patron and Iramasuka leader A.A.
Baramuli asked Akbar to resign for failing to accommodate
grassroots interests, especially from Eastern Indonesia.

"Akbar has not heeded aspirations from supporters from the
eastern part of the country who contributed most of the party's
votes in the last general election," Baramuli said.

Many analysts suspect that the caucus, known for its staunch
support for former president B.J. Habibie, harbors a "hate"
toward Akbar, whom they blamed for Habibie's aborted presidential
campaign. (jun)