DPR and MPR session

DPR and MPR session

From Republika

Recent rumors had it that People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Amien Rais and House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Akbar Tandjung secretly agreed to change the General Session of the MPR into a special session in order to unseat Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid from office. Later, a number of political forces, mass movements and NGOs also voiced a desire to unseat Gus Dur. However, both Amien and Akbar have denied the rumors despite their outspokenness concerning Gus Dur.

Procedurally, it is impossible to convene a special session of the MPR in August 2000 because to turn the annual session into a special one is both procedurally and temporally impossible. Stipulation of MPR No. III/MPR/1978 states that an MPR special session can be convened at the request of the DPR in order to ask for the accountability (including, if necessary, the impeachment or dismissal) of the president if he violates the Constitution or the state's course.

Before proposing the convening of an MPR special session, the DPR must first have conclusive evidence that the President has violated the Constitution and the state's course. If these two requirements are fulfilled, the DPR then issues its first memorandum. If after the first memorandum the President continues to violate the Constitution and/or the state's course, it issues a second memorandum. Then, if a month after the second memorandum the President continues to violate the Constitution and/or the state's course, the DPR reserves the right to propose to the MPR that a special session be convened for the purpose of asking for the President's accountability report and if necessary discharging him from office.

The intervals related to the memorandums is four months while the sessions of the DPR to come to an agreement for the issuance of the memorandums will take quite a while, especially if in these DPR sessions the President must first be summoned. So, is it possible for the MPR to convene a special session in August 2000?

I don't think the DPR can conclude today that Gus Dur has violated the Constitution and the state's course because what Gus Dur has taken issue with refers only to controversial statements and not government policies or decisions.

What is of utmost importance and greatest urgency now is correction of Gus Dur's Cabinet to ensure that it will quickly complete its most important assignment of bringing about economic recovery and putting a stop to upheavals related to the threat of national disintegration. A change of president is no guarantee that Indonesia's recovery will be plain sailing.

I. SOEDJUDI

Jakarta