Baramuli, Fahmi get MPR tickets

UJUNGPANDANG, South Sulawesi (JP): Arnold A. Baramuli proved once again that he is a survivor.

After President B.J. Habibie rebuffed calls on Friday to suspend aides, including Baramuli, over the Bank Bali scandal, the 69-year-old Supreme Advisory Council (DPA) chairman was elected on Saturday by the South Sulawesi provincial legislature to represent it in the nation's highest institution -- the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).

Baramuli was among the two state officials elected in two separate provinces to be regional representatives in the Assembly.

The other was Minister of Manpower Fahmi Idris, 56, who was elected to represent South Kalimantan.

Each province is allotted seats for five regional representatives to the 700-member Assembly, which in November will elect a new president and endorse the State Policy Guidelines.

The South Sulawesi provincial legislature gave 48 votes to Baramuli to represent the province. The other representatives are Jusuf Kalla who won 52 votes, Ishak Iskandar 45 votes, Andi Jaya Sose 44 and Aksa Mahmud 43.

Meanwhile from Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, the council there pushed Fahmi in as an Assembly member with the fourth highest votes. Fahmi won 21 votes.

The other four representatives for the province will be Syamsiwal Qamar with 36 votes, Urif Suhar Yanto 34 votes, Sulaiman H.B. 29, and Amidhan 14.

Prior to the election, students of Banjarmasin's Lambung Mangkurat University staged a noisy rally urging the 52-member council to be more discriminating in its choice of regional representatives.

After several hours the protest dwindled out peacefully without incident.

According to Law No. 4/1999 on the Composition of the People's Consultative Assembly and House of Representatives, both Baramuli and Fahmi must resign from their government posts before resuming an Assembly role.

The spokesman for the Golkar faction in South Sulawesi, Agus Arifin Nu'mang, said the party had received a letter from Baramuli stating his readiness to resign his state post should he be elected to the Assembly.

Baramuli has come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks for his alleged role in the Bank Bali scandal.

Baramuli and Fahmi will join Coordinating Minister for Economy, Finance and Industry Ginanjar Kartasasmita who on Thursday was elected to represent West Java in the Assembly. (05/30)