Gus Dur challenges House to unseat him

JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid said on Friday he was ready for any move by lawmakers to impeach him.

"The DPR (House of Representatives) can call a special session. Go ahead, I'm not worried. I never wanted to be president anyway," Abdurrahman said after Friday prayers at the Baiturrahman Mosque near Bina Graha presidential office.

His statement was made following considerable pressure to resign by critics disappointed with his performance during his first 12 months in office.

Abdurrahman accused his critics of ignoring his achievements one year into the five-year presidential term, citing an improved economy due to increased exports.

"There's progress in all aspects. Whether it is accepted or not, I leave it to the people to decide in the next election," he said.

However, the President conceded that foreign investors had yet to return to the country due to continuing violence in several regions, political infighting and corrupt bureaucracies.

Later in the day, presidential spokesman Wimar Witoelar dismissed suggestions that the President was trying to provoke the legislators, saying that Abdurrahman's remark was not a challenge but "a polite way" to respond to the criticism against his government.

"I don't think that was a challenge because it is better to say go ahead rather than ordering the arrest of those who have been calling for Gus Dur's resignation," Wimar told a press conference, referring to the President by his nickname.

Critics of the President have stepped up their attacks in recent days, making concerted calls for his resignation, accusing him of corruption and demanding a special session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to unseat him.

MPR chairman Amien Rais, who pushed for Abdurrahman's presidential candidacy last year, has spearheaded the calls for Abdurrahman to step down.

On Wednesday Amien apologized for his advocacy and vowed to make amends for his wrong choice of presidential candidate.

In Semarang, social observer Emha Ainun Nadjib called on the President to establish an emergency presidium to bring the country out of the crisis that is griping it.

He said the presidium should include Amien, Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri, Muslim scholar Nurcholish Madjid, and Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Meanwhile, the DPR Speaker Akbar Tandjung asked President Abdurrahman to improve himself after receiving criticisms from representatives and notables from various sectors of society.

"It's better for Gus Dur to change, instead of challenging the critics. That will only make the criticisms stronger," Akbar, who is also Golkar Party chairman, told reporters on Friday.

He considers the criticisms, which have been expressed by a wide range of people, to be expressed with a desire for an improvement in Gus Dur's performance.

He said that, so far, no faction at the House had sent a memorandum calling for a special session of the Assembly. (byg/har/jun/sur)