Commission deliberations end smoothly on last day

Commission deliberations end smoothly on last day

JAKARTA (JP): The final day of commission-level deliberations
in the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) went smoothly
yesterday with only a minor "interruption" on a technical issue.

The end of the commission meetings sets the stage for
tomorrow's plenary session to formally endorse the State Policy
Guidelines and other decrees, including a provision to grant
extra powers to the president.

Such was the brevity of the three commission meetings that it
caught several journalists off guard as they ended ahead of their
scheduled two hours time allotment.

Commission A discussed the State Policy Guidelines, while
Commission B talked about the presidential and vice-presidential
elections and non-State Policy Guideline decrees. Commission C
deliberated on the President's accountability address.

The five decrees set to be passed are on extra presidential
powers, the Assembly's internal rules, the presidential and vice-
presidential elections and the outline of the policy guidelines.

The swiftness of the commission meetings was not unexpected as
prior agreement on the draft decrees had been reached in
preliminary session which ended in January.

The only noticeable incident yesterday occurred when a speech
by the United Development Party's (PPP) Bachtiar Chamzah was
interrupted by Golkar's Fahmi Idris.

Before ending Commission C's meeting, deputy chair Agung
Laksono asked all five factions to briefly reassert their support
for the renomination of President Soeharto and the acceptance of
his accountability speech.

When PPP's turn came, their spokesman proceeded to give a long
account of the party's support for Soeharto and B.J. Habibie as
the presidential and vice presidential candidates respectively.

Time limit

Fahmi Idris soon interrupted saying that PPP had exceeded its
time limit and that it was a repetition of previous statements.

PPP Assembly chairman, Yusuf Syakir, later expressed
disappointment over the interruption.

Yusuf said the faction felt it was important to state its
reasons for nominating Soeharto and Habibie.

"This is not a mere village meeting which has little weight
and can quickly elect a neighborhood leader," he charged.

Fahmi vehemently argued that PPP had violated procedures when
it went beyond its allotted time. "All the other factions only
used up an average of two minutes, but PPP exceeded that," he
said noting that they had run close to five minutes.

Agung Laksono, who is also a Golkar Assembly member, seemed to
support the interruption.

"An interruption is allowed only if it does not touch the
substance of the meeting, but only on the procedures and
technical aspects," Agung said.

President

Later yesterday afternoon, Habibie in his capacity as the
coordinator of Golkar's Board of Patrons, held a closed door
meeting with representatives from the coalition of the Armed
Forces, bureaucracy and Golkar at the House of Representatives
building.

Those seen in attendance included Armed Forces commander Gen.
Wiranto and the Assembly's Armed Forces faction chief Lt. Gen.
Yunus Yosfiah, representing the Armed Forces; regional
representatives chief Hasan Basri Durin, the home ministry's
director general for social political affairs Achdari,
representing the bureaucracy; and outgoing State Minister of
Public Housing Akbar Tandjung and Golkar executive Abdul Gafur,
representing Golkar.

Few details of the meeting were given, with Tandjung merely
saying that it was a regular update on the results of the General
Assembly.

Tandjung said there was no discussion of preparations for the
presidential and vice-presidential inaugurations. He added that
Habibie would report the results of the meeting to Soeharto as
Golkar's chief patron.

This afternoon, representatives of the five factions are to
individually meet with President Soeharto at his residence on Jl.
Cendana, Central Jakarta.

The meetings will proceed in alphabetical order with the Armed
Forces faction going first. The factions will tally Soeharto's
administrative requirements and formally ask if he is ready to be
renominated for president.

The dominant Golkar faction will meet with Soeharto at 3 p.m.
with a delegation comprising of outgoing State Minister of
Development Planning Ginandjar Kartasasmita, Akbar Tandjung,
outgoing Minister of Information R. Hartono and outgoing Minister
of Transportation and Golkar executive Ary Mardjono.

Antara quoted PPP chairman Ismail Hasan Matareum as saying
that he would not go himself to meet with Soeharto.

The five representatives from the faction's central board of
executives will be enough, he said. (das/byg)