Gus Dur meets Habibie again

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)