Amendment to empower govt: Megawati
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
President Megawati Soekarnoputri hailed the recent amendment to the 1945 Constitution by the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), saying it would help build a strong government.
Contradicting her previous statement that only slight changes were needed for the Constitution, Megawati said the constitutional reform had shifted the course of the country.
"A direct presidential election will overcome the weakness of the country's multiparty system, improve the president's legitimacy and accountability, as well as ensure the unity of the country," Megawati said in her state of the nation address in front of the House of Representatives on Friday.
During her speech, the President also submitted the 2003 state budget draft to the House, which opened its period of sitting.
She acknowledged that the direct presidential election would provide much-needed legitimacy to the elected president.
"The situation has hampered the emergence of a political party that is strong and provides effective support for the government to perform, which is required in the presidential system we share," she said.
"On paper the government works under the presidential system, but in practice, we exercise a parliamentarian system."
The practice resulted in the ouster of President Abdurrahman Wahid last year.
Megawati said that through a direct election, Indonesia would name a president who won the support of most regions in the country.
"Therefore the future president should recognize people's aspirations and understand the interests of people from different walks of life," Megawati said.
The MPR Annual Session ran in an unexpectedly smooth way. Many have praised the legislative body's efforts for changing the Constitution in line with democracy.
Megawati has come under fire for exercising a double standard regarding the constitutional amendment. While showing her support for the process, she let a faction in her Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) oppose the amendment.
The rejection dealt mostly with the implementation of a direct presidential election that would diminish the Assembly's role.
The opposition said the highest law-making body should have supervised all state institutions in the current era of decentralization. Otherwise, they said, this would threaten national unity.
Megawati said on Friday that the new system resulting from the constitutional amendment would proceed if the whole nation prepared itself for the changes, due to take place after the general election in 2004.
She said that the amendment would bring about many consequences and demanded all state officials to immediately take follow-up actions to support the changes.
"The new system of our country requires everybody to work hard over the next couple of months and years," she said.
On the part of the House, she said that the new system required the statesmanship of the legislators.
Also at the venue, House Speaker Akbar Tandjung said the House would prioritize the deliberation of political bills during its current sitting period.
He said the bills were necessary to establish a strong legal base for the General Election Commission (KPU), which will prepare the 2004 election.
"It will depend on the performance of the House to provide a legal basis for the country's new national system," Akbar said in his speech.
He was referring to the general election, political parties, the direct presidential election and the composition of the MPR, DPR and Regional Representative Council bills.
The government had submitted the bills on general election and political parties, the deliberation of which will start on Aug. 22.