Gus Dur tells supporters to correct the government

JAKARTA (JP): Controversial scholar Abdurrahman Wahid has advised his 30 million followers in Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) to correct but not topple the government.

Abdurrahman reminded members of the largest Moslem organization that the government belongs to the people and therefore the public should help maintain it.

"We have the obligation to correct its flaws and weaknesses, but we may not topple it," Abdurrahman, better known as Gus Dur, was quoted by Antara as saying.

Addressing a gathering of NU members in the Central Java town of Demak on Sunday, Abdurrahman likened the government to a large house.

"When the house develops cracks here and there, what we need is to patch the holes, not to tear it down and rebuild it anew," he said.

He added that he believed the government would maintain its commitment to justice and prosperity.

Abdurrahman said that despite NU's political neutrality, all NU members should exercise their individual political rights.

Once a powerful political party, NU pledged in 1984 to abandon politics but guaranteed its members the individual freedom to join any political organization.

Senior NU members are active in Golkar, the Moslem-oriented United Development Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party.

Abdurrahman, however, reminded all NU members to be independent of outside influences.

He also criticized the Surabaya mayor for advising East Java businesses not to employ people who refuse to vote for Golkar.

"It is not right to fire a worker for political reasons," he said.

Meanwhile, in Semarang yesterday, Abdurrahman said he would give the chairman of NU's youth wing, M. Iqbal Assegaf, a chance to reconcile with NU's central board.

"I give Iqbal the opportunity to correct himself," he told The Jakarta Post.

Iqbal told the media during a national Golkar meeting last week, that he, as a Golkar member, had the right to win his six million colleagues over to ruling Golkar group. He, however, denied he would bring Ansor into Golkar.

Iqbal reportedly submitted to Golkar deputy chief Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana a list of Ansor members he wants considered for the 1997-2002 House of Representatives membership.

Abdurrahman threatened to dissolve Ansor for supporting Golkar, saying Iqbal's maneuver ran against NU's political neutrality.

Ansor has been estranged from NU in recent years chiefly because of personal differences between its chairman and Abdurrahman. (imn/har)