Golkar Party seeks alternative candidate

Golkar Party seeks alternative candidate

JAKARTA (JP): The Golkar Party's central board of executives
is seeking an alternative presidential candidate in anticipation
of a possible rejection of President B.J. Habibie's
accountability speech by the People's Consultative Assembly
(MPR), the party's deputy chairman Marzuki Darusman said on
Sunday.

Marzuki, who heads the party's faction at the Assembly,
declined to nominate an alternative Golkar Party presidential
candidate. But he did reveal that a new candidate could be drawn
from inside or outside the party.

"The alternative candidate -- if we have to name one -- would
be decided hours before the presidential election on Wednesday,"
Marzuki told a media conference.

Golkar confirmed Habibie's candidacy in a leadership meeting
held early last week. The party also authorized Habibie to choose
his running mate -- Indonesian Military chief Gen. Wiranto -- and
provided a mandate to the executive board to adopt an alternate
candidate if necessary.

Habibie's fate will be known on Tuesday, when 695 members of
the Assembly will decide on whether to accept his accountability
speech.

Marzuki said that his faction's hope of reaching a consensus
with other factions was fading because four factions -- the
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), the
National Awakening Party (PKB), the Love the Nation Democratic
Party (PDKB) and the Indonesian Nationhood grouping -- had
rejected the President's report.

"The only thing we could do now is to fight for a secret
ballot on the accountability speech, with a hope that we can
solicit support from other factions," he said.

Marzuki said that the party's central board had prepared four
options if the President's report was rejected.

"Golkar will go ahead with Habibie's nomination, seek an
alternative presidential candidate, back other factions'
presidential candidates, or leave it for the Golkar faction's 184
members to freely make their own choices."

But Marzuki said the second alternative was the most likely
mode of action.

"Of course it's legal for the party to go ahead with Habibie's
nomination, despite a vote of no confidence by the Assembly, but
it will be a serious problem from a moral and ethical point of
view," he said.

There is no legal consequence for a president whose
accountability speech is turned down, although the Provisional
Assembly rejected in 1967 the report presented by founding
president Sukarno and unseated him.

Golkar's deputy secretary Mahadi Sinambela said on Sunday that
his faction was split on Habibie's candidacy following statements
of rejection of the President's speech from four Assembly
factions.

He said the rejection had sparked anger among Habibie's
supporters in the faction and provoked them to "launch certain
moves which do not conform to the party's policy line".

"They invited leaders of the party's provincial chapters to
the Sahid Jaya Hotel without notifying the chairman (Akbar
Tandjung)," he said. He declined to identify the group's members.

Most Golkar chapter leaders are staying in Jakarta until the
presidential election is over.

Mahadi said his faction would accept the Assembly's decision
if it rejected Habibie's accountability report. (05/rms)