Gus Dur's wish to quit rejected by NU leaders

BAGU, West Nusa Tenggara (JP): Senior ulemas rejected yesterday Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) chairman Abdurrahman Wahid's wish to retire and hold elections next year.

Ahmad Bagdja, the secretary-general of the organization, and Mustofa Bisri, the deputy chairman of the organization's syuriyah (lawmaking body), said separately that Abdurrahman's wish was against NU's statutes.

Ahmad said there were procedures that Abdurrahman would have to meet should he want to hold the congress and elections before 1999 as scheduled. For instance, Abdurrahman should solicit the support of at least two thirds of the organization's 26 chapters.

Abdurrahman, better known as Gus Dur, should also obtain the support of Rais Aam (chairman) of the syuriyah, and again seek the approval of a plenary meeting of senior ulemas.

"The problem is that there will not be another national meeting before the 1999 NU congress," Ahmad said.

Abdurrahman told the press Tuesday he wished to retire soon and would support any motion to hold the congress and election of new leaders ahead of schedule. Among those who expressed the wish to hold the congress sooner was chairman of Yogyakarta's NU chapter, Nuruddin Amin.

Support

Support also came from M. Iqbal Assegaf, the chairman of the Ansor Youth Movement -- an affiliate of NU, who said it was advisable Abdurrahman resign as he had been leading the organization for 13 years.

"Gus Dur has been more busy with external affairs rather than internal affairs," he said, adding that "external affairs" had drawn attention to the organization.

With some 30 million members and followers across the country, NU is believed to have great political influence, despite its repeated pledge to stay out of politics.

Mustofa shared Ahmad's stance on the issue.

"Gus Dur gave that statement 'on the street,' not in a formal forum," he said.

Ahmad said Abdurrahman's statement was meant to gauge the strength of his support from NU members.

The comments were made on the sideline of the organization's meeting of ulemas, which opened Monday and is scheduled to conclude today. Days before the opening, there was speculation that some members would use the forum to seek a replacement for Abdurrahman Wahid. This was evident by the hundreds of participants who distributed critical articles on him.

It was not the first time Abdurrahman, known for his controversial statements and actions, has declared his wish to retire.

Prior to the 1994 congress which reelected him to a second term, he said he no longer wanted to be chairman. In the congress, however, he battled it out to be reelected.

Muchit Muzadi, another deputy chairman of the lawmaking body, said only Abdurrahman knew the right time to resign from the leadership of the organization.

"It's Gus Dur's responsibility to arrange NU leadership succession," he told people attending the launch of two books, NU, Pasca Gus Dur (NU in the post-Gus Dur era) and Menghasut Gus Dur (Instigating Gus Dur).

Muchit conceded that Abdurrahman might have made mistakes in his leadership, but called for a formal forum to discuss these mistakes.

An Australian observer on Indonesian politics, Greg Barton, described Abdurrahman as an airplane pilot, the only person who knows the objective condition of a flight.

"Gus Dur might have his own reasons for all his activities and maneuvers, including his joint visit with President Soeharto's eldest daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana to a number of NU's Pondok Pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) during the election campaign in April and May this year," he said.

But Abdurrahman said that should he resign, he would not abandon NU.

"There are many other positions in NU for me to occupy, in addition to developing my personal career," he said.

Abdurrahman said Tuesday that he would like to be a freelance writer or work as an activist for a non-governmental organization. (imn/43)