Calling Golkar's bluff

Calling Golkar's bluff

A desperate situation indeed calls for desperate measures, but
Golkar has no right to resort to political blackmail in diverting
attention from an investigation into allegations of improper
behavior by its chairman, Akbar Tandjung, who also happens to be
the House speaker. As the second largest political party, Golkar
has significant influence on the fate of this country, and that
is all the more reason why it should use its power responsibly.

The House of Representatives is mulling over whether or not to
initiate an inquiry into allegations that Akbar misused funds
belonging to the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) in 1999 when he
was state secretary under President B.J. Habibie. As pressure
mounts on the House to set up a special committee to look into
what is now called Buloggate II, some Golkar officials have
resorted to intimidation, alluding to the fact that it could do
significant damage, not only to other parties or political
figures, but also the rest of the nation.

Some Golkar officials have planted media stories suggesting
that if the House started the inquiry, Akbar would expose the
involvement of other, still active political figures who received
some of the Bulog money. The fact that some of the minority
political parties in the House have supported Golkar in opposing
the inquiry is indicative of the power of the threat.

Golkar officials have also threatened to call for the House to
pursue other inquiries into allegations of graft by current and
past leaders outside Golkar if other parties pressed ahead with
their demand for a Buloggate II inquiry.

Dragging other political leaders into the mud, if they were
equally corrupt, would certainly be welcomed as a way of
eradicating corruption in the nation. But Golkar crossed the line
of political propriety when it threatened to withdraw its current
support for the government of President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Some Golkar officials promised a protracted and ugly battle
over Buloggate II, not dissimilar from the Buloggate I inquiry,
which implicated then President Abdurrahman Wahid. That battle
ensnared the entire nation for over a year to the point that
everything else, including efforts at economic recovery and
reform, had to be put aside. After more than 12 months, Buloggate
I culminated in Abdurrahman's impeachment in July.

When Megawati took the helm in July, there was a consensus by
all the major political parties, including her own Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) and Akbar's Golkar,
that she would be allowed to govern with little interference
until the end of her term in 2004. That consensus was crucial
because the nation had lost so much ground in terms of economic
and political reform during the Buloggate I Affair.

Going by statements of some Golkar officials, the party is now
threatening to break that consensus as part of its battle in the
Buloggate II Affair. As the second-largest faction in the House,
Golkar could frustrate the Megawati government's legislative
agenda. Even prior to Buloggate II, we saw ample evidence of the
destruction that the House could inflict on the government's
economic program these last three months. With Golkar pulling the
rug from under the government, the prospect is even more
daunting.

While Golkar has officially disowned these acts of
intimidation, the systematic way in which they have been made
indicates that these were conscious efforts at averting a full
inquiry into its chairman. While insisting that the threats did
not represent the official party line, those Golkar officials had
the sanction of their leadership when they made them.

President Megawati and her PDI Perjuangan should not be cowed
by these threats and blackmail. While politics may be the art of
compromise, there are some principles that can never be
compromised.

First, Megawati's administration has made a strong commitment
to the establishment of good governance and clean government, and
hence the eradication of corruption. Buloggate II, like Buloggate
I, falls into this category and should therefore be pursued. If
Buloggate I was about the reputation of the president, the goal
of Buloggate II is to establish the credibility and integrity of
the House speaker.

Second, the Buloggate II inquiry should be started precisely
because Golkar has resorted to blackmail or threats, to hold the
entire nation hostage. Having disowned its dark past and now
claimed the reform mantle, the former ruling party has shown its
true colors again by resorting to such dirty tricks.

As a small footnote, it may be worth remembering that Golkar
is not solid over the Buloggate II issue, and has seen its share
of bitter infighting between different factions within the party.
With the party congress scheduled for next month, there are many
within Golkar who would like to see Akbar replaced.

As a matter of principle and considering all things, it would
certainly be worth it to call Golkar's bluff. There are
consequences for the nation for sure, but the stakes are so great
for the nation that PDI Perjuangan, as the largest political
party, should use all its power to push for an inquiry into
Buloggate II.