Golkar gives Habibie 'conditional' support

JAKARTA (JP): Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung said on Wednesday the ruling party would continue its support for B.J. Habibie's presidential nomination if the People's Consultative Assembly accepted his account of his leadership for the past year.

While stressing that Golkar's support for Habibie remains solid, Akbar said the party would continue to campaign for his presidency only if the Assembly accepted Habibie's accountability report for the time since he took office in May last year from fallen president Soeharto.

Akbar's statement, which constituted the first clearly worded qualification for Habibie's candidacy, was a reverse of his earlier unconditional support for the incumbent president. Akbar had previously hinted at the possibility of reviewing Golkar's support for Habibie, but had not given firm conditions.

Habibie's chances, Akbar said, "will depend greatly on his ability to carry out the tasks he received from the MPR".

The special session of the People's Consultative Assembly in November last year handed Habibie a number of tasks, including launching thorough investigations into alleged corruption by Soeharto and his cronies. Eight months after the mandate was given, however, no results of the probe were forthcoming.

"So far Golkar is still committed to carrying out the decision of the Golkar leadership meeting: the presidential nomination of B.J. Habibie," Akbar said in a media briefing at his office on Wednesday, Antara reported.

Akbar, who served as state secretary under Habibie until May and state minister for public housing under Soeharto, said Golkar will push Habibie to execute all of the decrees of the MPR, including the one on Soeharto's alleged corruption.

He also warned Habibie's Cabinet members to work optimally because their performance will also affect Habibie's chances. In addition, Golkar would intensify its campaign to convince other political parties to accept Habibie's account and support his nomination.

"Golkar's acceptance of his accountability will facilitate Habibie's further steps, but a rejection will complicate his next steps," Akbar said.

Habibie invited Golkar executives and advisers, including the controversial chairman of the Supreme Advisory Council (DPA) A.A. Baramuli, to his residence on Sunday night in a bid to end growing conflicts between Akbar's camp and his own inner circle.

According to Akbar, Baramuli, who had previously campaigned to unseat him, desperately tried in Sunday's meeting to assure Akbar that the campaign was launched because of "his love for me".

Baramuli conceded he had persuaded 14 of the 27 provincial chapters to demand that Akbar hold an extraordinary congress where he would have been expected to admit his failure to control his deputy, Marzuki Darusman, who is known to be critical of Habibie's nomination. The motion for an extraordinary congress was dropped in Sunday's meeting.

Akbar said he had to trust Baramuli's explanation because of his respectable position as the President's supreme adviser.

"I do not know the real situation, but I have to trust Baramuli as DPA chairman," Akbar said.

Marzuki said after the meeting that Baramuli had clarified his position and had no hard feelings toward Baramuli, whose name has been closely linked with the Bank Bali scandal. (prb)