Bintang says he never questioned Pancasila

Bintang says he never questioned Pancasila

JAKARTA (JP): Legislator Sri Bintang Pamungkas, facing dismissal from the House of Representatives (DPR), denies all accusations by his party leaders that he has undermined the state ideology Pancasila.

Bintang lashed out at United Development Party (PPP) chairman Ismail Hasan Metareum for publicly declaring yesterday his purported "political mistakes" which, according to Bintang, was done to create distorted image of him.

He categorically denied the accusation that he ever challenged Pancasila, a maneuver in political suicide here.

Bintang did not see any need to dispute the state-ideology but, he said, does fear people getting into arguments and taking sides over such issues as the relevance of Pancasila to Islam and the Holy Koran.

"Both the government and the political parties have the obligation to explain this concept (of ideology and religion not conflicting) to the public," he told journalists.

He pointed to the indigenous nature of Pancasila. "It only applies in Indonesia. It's only meaningful if it's marked with noble spirit, which is religion, and if it's implemented," he said. "The same principle applies to the 1945 Constitution."

PPP leaders announced their decision earlier this week to withdraw Bintang from the House because of his persistence in questioning the relevance of Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution.

This is a major transgression, they claim, and against the official party line. Questions of Pancasila and the Constitution have been resolved, they added, clarifying PPP's position.

"But Bintang has continued to question them in official forums and at seminars," said Aisyah Amini, a member of both the PPP executive board and the House.

Bintang's dismissal has to be consulted with House leaders.

Bintang also denied being guilty of making a number of poorly thought out statements throughout his legislative career, as his party leaders have accused.

"I always speak constructively, complete with reasoning and solutions toward any problems," he said. "When I have spoken on such subjects as presidential aid for poor villages or about land appropriation, I presented solutions as well."

Bintang reiterated his intention to establish a new political party, something which he said is plausible, given the current readiness of the country to review the existing election system.

Meanwhile, a Bandung-based organization threw its support behind Bintang and criticized his withdrawal from the House.

It also called on the public to boycott PPP.

Ahmad Taufik, chairman of the Institute for Strategic and Islamic Studies, said in a press statement yesterday that the party leaders' decision reflected their "political immaturity".

"All of the accusations they leveled against Bintang were not necessarily mistakes...they should be discussed," Ahmad said. "If necessary, they could have held debates between Bintang and party leaders over the issues."

The decision to withdraw Bintang was an "arbitrary measure taken and made through the use of obscure and undemocratic political regulations", he said.

The party leaders have resorted to ways more typical of "authoritarian dictators", he said. "It only serves to strengthen the image that the condition of domestic politics is not healthy."

They said the decision not only harmed PPP, but also the people whose interests were often voiced by Bintang on many occasions.

"We are grateful for a people's representative like Bintang, who is courageous enough to speak up and say the truth," Ahmad said. "We demand that the party leaders reconsider and cancel the decision." (swe)