Habibie-Wiranto a 'disastrous' ticket: Observers
JAKARTA (JP): Analysts censured on Wednesday President B.J. Habibie's decision to name Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Wiranto as his running mate as a "total lack of sensitivity" and said it would only see the demise of his reelection.
Sociopolitical observer Wimar Witoelar said the decision was "probably the worst of all possibilities".
"Their questionable standing among the public will just create a very disastrous ticket which is doomed to fail," Wimar told The Jakarta Post.
Habibie's credibility was eroded by the violence in East Timor, the Bank Bali scandal and the termination of the investigation into alleged corruption in former president Soeharto's charities.
Wiranto on the other hand was heavily criticized for his failure to resolve alleged abuses of human rights throughout the country.
"Habibie and Wiranto are just too unpopular and it's too risky to be presented as a serious option to the MPR (People's Consultative Assembly), so it just shows a total lack of political sensitivity on the part of Habibie," Wimar said.
"If they force the ticket through by some kind of means like money politics, then that will invite a very strong public reaction in the form of mass action and demonstration, so it is clearly an irresponsible choice".
Wiranto was named Habibie's running mate after a two-day leadership meeting of the Golkar Party which ended early on Wednesday morning.
They agreed to allow Habibie to choose among the party's four vice presidential candidates, which were Wiranto, former Cabinet member Ginandjar Kartasasmita, Yogyakarta Governor Hamengkubuwono X and party leader Akbar Tandjung.
"It is the latest in a series of purely political ploys by Golkar, because for one thing Akbar and his board evaded the responsibility of actually choosing the vice presidential nominee and handed it over to Habibie," Wimar said.
He also said that it could be a "political trick" so Akbar got a special mandate which would allow him to change the party's policy on the presidential candidate at the last minute.
"It is politically masterful that Akbar managed to get the congress to give him this optional mandate," Wimar said.
Akbar and some reformist elements within the party are known to be critical of Habibie's candidacy due to his strong link to Soeharto.
"By finally supporting Wiranto, it puts Habibie in a very very weak position so if his report is rejected, then Akbar will have a very convenient reason to search for a new candidate and he will not bear the responsibility of having to revoke the nomination of Habibie," Wimar said, referring to Habibie's accountability speech, which is scheduled to be delivered before the Assembly on Thursday evening.
Noted political observer Soedjati Djiwandono said "one quick reason" why Habibie chose Wiranto was that he wanted to have the support of the 38 members of the TNI at the House of Representatives.
Soedjati said, however, that Wiranto should not be nominated as vice presidential candidate because he was responsible for the violence in the troubled territories of Aceh, Maluku and East Timor.(02/05/byg)