'Golkar committed to clean government'
'Golkar committed to clean government'
JAKARTA (JP): Golkar chairman Harmoko said yesterday that the ruling political grouping is committed to the establishment of a clean government.
Addressing a year-end press conference, Harmoko pledged that Golkar would continue to fight corruption and collusion. Its campaign for a clean government, he said, would be conducted in legally accepted ways.
"Since its establishment (in 1964) Golkar has always been committed to the creation of a clean government," said Harmoko at the ruling party's headquarters in Slipi, West Jakarta. He was accompanied by other Golkar leaders.
In its campaign against corruption, however, Golkar will carefully uphold the presumption of innocence principle, Harmoko pledged.
The chairman was referring to the allegations of corruption recently leveled at Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto.
Harmoko made the remarks a few hours before Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono announced that Haryanto had been cleared of all corruption charges and that the case was considered closed by President Soeharto.
Moerdiono said the alleged violations were administrative mistakes.
The alleged violations, listed in three classified documents written by Inspector General of Development Kentot Harseno, were leaked and picked up by the media several weeks ago.
Harmoko said yesterday that Vice President Try Sutrisno, who holds supervision authority over all ministries, is working to get to the bottom of the leaked state secrets.
"If allegations of corruption are not supported by strong evidence, (this amounts to) slander, which will (also) face legal mechanisms," Harmoko said as quoted by the Antara news agency.
Golkar does not develop thoughts and comments which run counter to the existing "mechanisms", Harmoko told reporters.
In the year-end statement, Golkar noted progress in democracy throughout the year, despite various instances of corruption, collusion and other abuses of power.
"We must admit that political openness...reached a significant point in 1995. The freedom of the public to convey their opinions and the rise of new mass organizations... are proof of openness and democratization," Harmoko said.
Harmoko is also Minister of Information.
However, he said, corruption, collusion and the behavior of "certain government officials...sacrifice the interests of the powerless."
Golkar called for "the empowerment of the people's economy" so that more people, especially the poor, can benefit from economic growth. "It is an agenda which needs to be (implemented) more intensively," he said.
The statement, however, did not touch on the frequently raised need for an anti-monopoly law.
Harmoko said that a conducive climate for the development of a "people's economy" starts with the Bill on Small Enterprises, which was recently approved by the House of Representatives.
The statement also called for the maintenance of food security by halting the conversion of agricultural land for industrial purposes.
Regarding the 1997 general elections, Golkar does not believe in winning elections "just for the sake of winning". Rather, he said, Golkar strongly believes that "victory in elections is for the sake of development and the people's welfare."
Although the political climate has been heating up, "national stability has gone undisturbed" because of the public's "more mature" and increased awareness of politics. (anr)