Cabinet meeting held amid crisis over scandals

Cabinet meeting held amid crisis over scandals

JAKARTA (JP): In a show of unity two days after being censured
by the House of Representatives (DPR) for his alleged involvement
in two financial scandals, President Abdurrahman Wahid called an
emergency Cabinet meeting on Saturday.

In a departure from usual practice, Army, Navy and Air Force
chiefs of staff also attended the meeting, which was chaired by
Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

"Today's Cabinet meeting is only to listen to the opinions of
the ministers, as well as the Army, Navy and Air Force chiefs, on
steps that should be taken to implement reform and uphold the
law," Abdurrahman said after the closed meeting.

Speaking later in the day, presidential spokesman Wimar
Witoelar played down suggestions that Abdurrahman was losing
Cabinet support, saying the Cabinet was "fully functioning".

"Everybody is very happy to be on the team and if you compare
this to past Cabinets, this is the only one in which decisions
are discussed with great candor and openness," Wimar said.

He also said that Abdurrahman still had support from his
deputy Megawati Soekarnoputri and that "(during the meeting) they
made plans together to respond to the memorandum" from the DPR.

Wimar admitted, however, the meeting had "underlined" that
Cabinet members should remain solid.

"The meeting stressed that Cabinet members should remain solid
in creating the perception that they are not just a group of
individuals but really part of a team who will be assisting the
President in implementing reform," Wimar said.

Wimar added that "a legal and political team" would be drawn
up to respond to the DPR's censure.

He also reiterated that Abdurrahman remained confident that it
was the DPR, not the people, who were against him.

"He doesn't feel pressured by the public ... he feels intense
support (from the public) and he gets phone calls in the middle
of the night expressing support," Wimar said.

State Minister of Research and Technology Muh. AS Hikam backed
up Wimar's statement, saying that "all Cabinet ministers still
supported Gus Dur (as the President is popularly known)."

But Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra
gave a contradictory account.

Yusril said the meeting was "full of debate" and that he
himself had advised Abdurrahman to resign.

"Yes I conveyed that (resignation) message to him. I told him
that if I were in his position I would prefer to resign."

Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security
Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Friday the Cabinet would
run as usual despite the heated dispute between the President and
the House and let the President handle his problem in his own
way.

A House special committee's report concluded that Abdurrahman
allegedly played a role in the withdrawal and disbursement of Rp
35 billion from Bulog's Yanatera foundation and that the
President had been inconsistent in explaining a US$2 million
donation he received from the sultan of Brunei.

Commenting on the resignation of State Minister of
Administrative Reforms Ryaas Rasyid, Abdurrahman said that he
accepted Ryaas' decision and that he had signed a presidential
decree on Friday afternoon honorably dismissing Ryaas as a
Cabinet member.

"At the end of the Cabinet meeting, I announced that Ryaas
Rasyid had resigned and, therefore, I would like to thank him for
all his contributions," Abdurrahman said. (byg)