Gus Dur meets Habibie again

JAKARTA (JP): Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) chairman Abdurrahman Wahid met for the second time in a month with President B.J. Habibie, as he continued shuttling between top political leaders in an effort to prevent a deadlock in the upcoming presidential election.

Abdurrahman, also known as Gus Dur, said he told the President he wanted "to calm" the situation before the presidential election, although he refused to elaborate on the details of his meetings.

"It is my company secret," Abdurrahman said after a breakfast meeting with Habibie at the latter's private residence in South Jakarta.

Gus Dur, the founder of the National Awakening Party (PKB), said he would next meet with Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri and Golkar Party chairman Akbar Tandjung to harmonize their visions on November's presidential election.

"What I am doing is... anticipating a possible deadlock," he said.

A number of people are predicting a deadlock in the presidential election because no political party is likely to emerge from the general election with the required number of seats in the House of Representatives to determine the presidency. PDI Perjuangan is leading in provisional poll results, followed by Golkar.

On Wednesday, Gadjah Mada University political lecturer Ichlasul Amal reiterated his conviction that a deadlock could be avoided if leading political parties reached a consensus on the presidential election.

Ichlasul has proposed a stage-by-stage presidential election in which several candidates would be screened and voted for by the People's Consultative Assembly. Legislators in a discussion on Wednesday expressed support for the idea.

In his meeting with Habibie on June 18, Abdurrahman proposed a separation of power between the head of government and the head of state. His suggestion that the Assembly Speaker carry out state duties was slammed as unconstitutional by experts.

Minister of Justice/State Secretary Muladi, who was also present at the Wednesday meeting, said the President appreciated Abdurrahman's efforts.

"If (the initiative) came from the government it would be seen as an attempt at engineering. But the bottom-up process we are seeing from Gus Dur is very good," the minister said.

He said Abdurrahman also told Habibie about his plans to go to the United States for medical treatment and his daughter's upcoming marriage.

Separately, the chairman of the Muhammadiyah Muslim organization, Ahmad Syafii Maarif, disclosed on Sunday a recent meeting with Abdurrahman, during which the latter expressed his ambition to become president and revealed the lineup of his tentative Cabinet.

Megawati could become Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmad quoted Abdurrahman as saying.

In Bandung, West Java, Golkar executive Ekky Syahruddin said Habibie should be elected prime minister while Megawati could serve as president.

Meanwhile, a political observer from Padjadjaran University in Bandung, Bagir Manan, said PDI Perjuangan should actively lobby other parties in an effort to smooth Megawati's road to the presidency, adding that the party should not rule out a possible coalition with Golkar.(prb/swa/43)