Beware of the old forces

Sometimes it seems we are perpetually kept in the game of guessing who said what and why they said it.

When the Armed Forces (ABRI) warned the nation on Friday against a possible comeback of "old political forces", every thinking Indonesian could easily understand that the thinly veiled reference meant no other than former president Soeharto and his supporters. If every party agrees with this statement, it means ABRI leaders are as wise as the people, whose minds it was voicing.

The statement, made by ABRI Chief of Sociopolitical Affairs Lt. Gen. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, coincided with the preparation of a meeting of the ruling Golkar party, in which, according to its chairman, Harmoko, a group among its leaders are bending over backwards to defend the status quo and are ready to face off with those who want change.

Here, in this corner of the country's political geopolitics, the threat of the return of old political forces is genuine. But many believe that the looming danger is not serious because all doors have been shut to Soeharto's endeavor to return since he resigned on May 21 following nationwide protests against him.

However, judging by the span of time he managed to manipulate the system to build a protective system for his post-tenure life, one is not expected to take the matter lightly. After 32 years of oppressive rule, Soeharto must have left behind a group of fanatic fellow-travelers, who are ready to sneak into the corridors of today's politics, or who are there already.

They could be civilians or servicemen. Soeharto needs them to block any intention to confiscate the wealth he, his children and cronies may have illegally amassed. In this respect, we can foresee how heated Golkar's congress next month will be. Soeharto is still chief patron of the political entity.

During the congress, the party will not only elect a new executive board free from political opportunists, but also shed itself of any Soeharto elements in an effort to keep Golkar alive. We are of the opinion, however, that Golkar alone will not be strong enough to stop the return of any former political forces. Even if Soeharto and his loyalists fail here, they can strive elsewhere, for example by setting up one of those "formless organizations" of bygone days.

This problem, accompanied by the campaign to take over all the assets, is an Herculean undertaking. The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which will meet at the end of this year to discuss the coming general election, should also devise ways to prevent such a comeback. Its primary task should be to ask Soeharto how much he had enriched himself and his people and then strip him of all the powers the country's highest constitutional body gave him and declare that all his, his children and cronies assets belong to the nation.

If the problem is not solved once and for all, this nation will continue to monitor Soeharto's every political move instead of implementing reform.

ABRI can play a role in this national campaign because it is one of the pillars of Golkar and an influential faction within the MPR.