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)