House backs Endriartono's nomination as TNI chief
House backs Endriartono's nomination as TNI chief
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
To the surprise of many, the House of Representatives (DPR) has
sent a letter of approval to President Megawati Soekarnoputri
saying that it supported Army Chief of Staff Gen. Endriartono
Sutarto's nomination as chief of the Indonesian Military (TNI),
replacing Adm. Widodo A.S.
A Golkar legislator from the House's Commission I on political
and security affairs, Yasril Ananta Baharuddin, confirmed on
Monday that the approval was sent immediately after House Speaker
Akbar Tandjung received Commission 1's recommendation last
Thursday.
Yasril said that the House leaders required no approval from a
plenary session because the commission had evaluated the "vision
and mission" of Endriartono on Wednesday.
"The recommendation of Commission I is important. We've been
tasked with assessing the performance of the candidate," he told
The Jakarta Post.
Deputy chairman of the commission Ishak Latuconsina
acknowledged that the commission had endorsed the nomination of
Endriartono.
"A plenary session will only be a formality to hear the
House's approval because the decision has been made. That's all,"
Ishak added.
By securing the House's approval, Endriartono will likely only
need Megawati's signature to be the next TNI chief.
Endriartono was named military chief candidate by Megawati in
a letter sent to the House on May 10. At a plenary session on May
13, the House assigned Commission I to determine if the Army
chief of staff was fit and proper to lead the military.
During Wednesday's hearing, Endriartono pledged that he would
improve the welfare of low-ranking soldiers.
He said the future challenges faced by the nation would
consist of the transition to democracy, regional autonomy, law
enforcement, decentralization, and the advocacy for civil
society.
He emphasized that the current transitional process to
democracy needed serious supervision, so that it would remain on
the right track.
Deputy House speaker A.M. Fatwa said that the House was not in
a position to reject the nomination because there was only one
candidate.
Endriartono, born in the Central Java town of Purworejo on
April 29, 1947, and who graduated from the Army Academy in 1971,
was appointed the Army deputy chief in March 2000 and promoted to
his current job in October 2000.
Endriartono's nomination had drawn criticism because he should
have reached his mandatory retirement age of 55 on April. But
Adm. Widodo extended Endriatono's office term until 2007.
The next question will be who will be the next person to lead
the Army. Army's Strategic Reserves (Kostrad) Commander Lt. Gen.
Ryamizard Ryacudu and TNI Chief of General Affairs Lt. Gen.
Djamari Chaniago have risen to the surface as possible
replacement for Endriartono.