Habibie's performance

Habibie's performance

A year after President B.J. Habibie came to power, many people are busy writing reports on his performance. Some people are giving him positive grades, as a media poll conducted by the RCTI television network and some foreign media publications showed us a few months ago. Others are inclined to give him negative marks on the grounds that he has failed to resolve a string of crucial problems....

It is true that conditions (in Indonesia) have not quite recovered, although things are not as bad as they were before. Confidence in the government still has to be restored. The public's demand that existing problems be resolved at once is valid. So to, however, is the impression that certain parties who do not want to see things improve are working behind the scenes to maintain the status quo. The struggle now is between those who want to see conditions improve and those who wish them to remain chaotic. Reform naturally calls for improved conditions. Those who are for preserving the status quo, on the other hand, want conditions to remain in disorder.

-- Republika, Jakarta