Election fever, improper focus

Vice President Hamzah Haz has declared that if he goes on the campaign trail for the 2004 general elections, he will do this not in his capacity as the vice president of the country, but as general chairman of the United Development Party (PPP). For that purpose he plans to take leave of his vice presidential duties and will not make use of whatever facilities he has been accorded by the state.

But even such a friendly promise has provoked unexpected reactions of disapproval. Most commentators still consider Hamzah Haz's attitude as being incompatible with his official position as vice president of the country. He should instead first relinquish his post and then be allowed to assume the presidency of his party if he wishes to take part in the campaign.

The law on general elections does not provide for highly placed politicians like Hamzah Haz to take leave from their state duties in order to be able to go on campaigning for a party.

The matter has now become a controversial one, which has occupied the minds of most politicians and political commentators in recent weeks. However, what the general public is most annoyed about, is the fact that the politicians are already thinking and speaking of the general elections which will not take place until 2004 instead of focusing their attention on more urgent matters like the secessionist movements in several provinces demanding more self determination over their income.

Now the public is waiting for the government to announce further reduction of official rates and tariffs after the rupiah rate against the U.S. dollar has been showing stability with a strengthening trend prevailing (about Rp 9,000 per dollar). Now that President Megawati is on another foreign trip -- to some European countries, the public is grumbling about the diminishing attention on the part of the government to the plight of the poorer sections of the population.

The people are demanding that the government should only tackle critical issues like the demand for better payments of workers according to the standard provisions in each region and more essentially to reduce the number of unemployed people of about 40 million in total.

GANDHI SUKARDI

Jakarta