Habibie told to have moral ethics on his presidential candidacy

Habibie told to have moral ethics on his presidential candidacy

JAKARTA (JP): Observers called on President B.J. Habibie over
the weekend to have the moral ethics to withdraw his presidential
bid if his accountability speech is rejected by the People's
Consultative Assembly (MPR).

Senior political analyst Mochtar Pabottinggi of the National
Institute of Sciences said that if the speech was rejected, it
would be "politically irrational" for Habibie to insist on
pushing ahead with his candidacy.

"This would be totally irrational if the accountability speech
is rejected but, he or she could still runs for president,"
Mochtar told The Jakarta Post.

Under the current system, there are no formal implications if
the president's accountability report is rejected. The incumbent
still has the right to be nominated and elected.

However, law professor Soetandyo Wignjosoebroto of Airlangga
University, Surabaya, said that if the speech was rejected, it
would be "politically unethical" for Habibie to insist on the
candidacy.

"We should not base everything on a written document. We also
have to consider whether the decision is politically correct,"
Soetandyo said.

Crescent Star Party chairman Yusril Ihza Mahendra said that it
would be political suicide if the incumbent continued with his
bid for the presidency, having had his accountability rejected.

"It's true there is no formal ruling which forbids him from
continuing to run, but what are the chances of the same people
who rejected his report, voting him in as president a few days
later?" he asked.

Four of the 11 factions in the MPR have flatly rejected
Habibie's accountability speech, which was delivered on Thursday
night.

The four -- the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, the
National Awakening Party, the Indonesian Nationhood and the Love
the Nation Democratic Party -- said Habibie failed to account for
many of the issues which remained unresolved during his 16-month
tenure.

Only one faction, United Ummat Sovereignty, signaled its
outright acceptance of the speech.

Six other factions, including the Golkar Party of Reform,
indicated reservations over the speech but fell short of stating
whether they would reject it.

An MPR commission will now deliberate the accountability
report and return its conclusions to the MPR plenary either on
Monday or on Tuesday. (byg)