Horse trading feared in election bill deliberation
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Legislators deliberating the presidential election bill have agreed to discuss contentious issues in closed-door meetings, denying the public access to the deliberations of the draft.
All nine factors in the House of Representatives (DPR) agreed on Monday to bring up some crucial issues, including requirements for presidential candidates, to a House task force (Panja) after they failed to bridge the differences over the issues.
Normally, legislators settle contentious issues in special committee (Pansus) meetings, which are open to public scrutiny.
The agreement to bring the bill's contentious issues to closed-door meetings raised speculation that the problems would be settled through backroom dealings.
The bill is expected to be endorsed by the House in June.
House factions continued on Monday their debate on the requirements of presidential candidates with three factions -- Golkar, Reform and Crescent Star Party (PBB) -- proposing that candidates should at least have a university diploma.
They argued that presidential candidates had to possess the intellectual capabilities, which they said, could be measured through their educational background, to enable them to have a clear outlook.
"We want presidential candidates to be intelligent and have strong leadership qualities. If the candidates only have high school education, they will not meet that standard," said Golkar's Hafiz Zawawi at a hearing with Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno.
Legislators from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), whose chairwoman, Megawati Soekarnoputri, did not finish her university studies, rejected the proposition.
J.E. Sahetapy of PDI Perjuangan said deliberation of the bill showed political rivalry among the factions.
He suggested that people should not be proud of a university diploma as a reference.
"We all know that a diploma has become a commodity. It would be better if we demanded morality and intellectuality rather than certificates," Sahetapy added.
Due to strong contention, all factions agreed to discuss the issue at a closed-door meeting, scheduled for May 19.
Apart from the issue of candidates' educational background, legislators also brought up other matters in the closed-door deliberations, including the obligation for candidates to declare their wealth and that candidates should not have been involved in the abortive coup of the now-defunct Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) in 1965.
Andi Matalatta and Patrialis Akbar from Golkar and Reform factions respectively denied suggestions that the decision to bring the issue to a closed-door meeting was designed to make an under-the-table deal among factions.
Andi said that his faction would keep its proposal intact until the final deliberation.
"We will not use this issue as a bargaining instrument with PDI Perjuangan," he said, referring to PDI Perjuangan's proposal that presidential candidates should not have a criminal record.
Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung was convicted of a graft case last year but was not jailed, pending his appeal with the Supreme Court.
Patrialis also emphasized that his faction would fight for the stipulation until the deliberations ended. "We will defend our proposal until the vote," he added.