Harmoko insists Golkar will not abuse power

JAKARTA (JP): Golkar's chairman promised yesterday that the group will not abuse its power if it won another controlling majority in the House of Representatives in the next general election.

"Golkar will never use its power arbitrarily. Golkar will use its power to promote the welfare, honor and integrity of all Indonesians," Golkar chairman Harmoko said at the end of a national conference.

"We reject dictatorship by the majority as much as we abhor tyranny by the minority," Harmoko said, as quoted by Antara.

The general election should not be seen as a contest for power between Golkar and the other political organizations, but rather as a drive between contestants to contribute to the increasingly complex national development process, he said.

A Golkar victory in the 1997 general election, as has been the case in the previous five elections, "would not be simply winning for the sake of winning," he told 600 Golkar leaders.

Golkar has won every election held under President Soeharto since 1971. Last time, in 1992, it won 68 percent of the total votes, against 17 percent collected by the United Development Party and 15 percent by the Indonesian Democratic Party.

Harmoko, the first civilian to lead Golkar, promised when elected chairman in 1994 to enhance the majority in the 1997 election.

President Soeharto, in his capacity as Golkar's chief patron, told the conference on Wednesday that the group should strive to win a controlling majority in the 500-seat House of Representatives. Seventy five seats have already been allocated to the Armed Forces, leaving 425 seats for the three political groups to contest.

Harmoko said a controlling majority for Golkar should be seen as a trust from the people.

"This trust will never make Golkar arrogant," he insisted, adding that Golkar will always uphold democracy, the law and the 1945 Constitution.

Harmoko said Golkar is selecting candidates for the House elections and promised the representatives would be of the highest quality as well as people of vision.

New faces

Golkar is expected to field many younger candidates in the coming election. Harmoko signed a decree last year setting an age limit of 65 years and limiting stints in the House to four terms.

Earlier, Bambang Trihatmodjo, a member of the Golkar executive board and son of President Soeharto, told reporters that he was not aware if his father was grooming a successor.

"Father has never thought about grooming a crown prince to replace him," Bambang said when he was approached by reporters at a break during the Golkar conference.

He underlined President Soeharto's assertion, made earlier this week to visiting Australian journalists, that he had never sought reelection.

"The People's Consultative Assembly will determine the President," Bambang said, adding that everything is up to the people.

When asked if he was interested in a political career, Bambang, a successful businessman, replied "Personally, I chose business."

"Father never told his children to do this or that. He left everything to his children to decide. He never gave directions," Bambang said. (emb)

Majority -- Page 2