House clears the way for Miranda despite controversy

House clears the way for Miranda despite controversy

Dadan Wijaksana, Jakarta

At a plenary session marred by furious protests led by lawmakers
from the Reform faction, was the House of Representatives
approved the appointment of Miranda S. Goeltom as the new senior
deputy governor of the central bank.

Although Miranda secured the second-highest post at Bank
Indonesia (BI), the process was not a smooth one, as the decision
had to be taken through a voting mechanism following a deadlock.

The protests, which basically centered on demands from some
lawmakers for clarification over reports questioning Miranda's
integrity, became so heated that Tosary Widjaja -- who presided
over the meeting -- called for a break to ease the tension and
accommodate lobbying efforts.

During the break, leaders from all nine factions discussed the
matter in a closed-door meeting that lasted about 15 minutes.
Tosary resumed the session and announced that the final decision
would be made by vote.

The vote clearly favored Miranda, with 140 lawmakers approving
her appointment, far outnumbering the 16 who voted against it.
The remaining 9 abstained.

Although 254 lawmakers signed the attendance list -- 3 more
than the quorum -- a mere 165 lawmakers were present for the
vote. The vote was still valid according to House regulations,
which declares a decision valid if it garners majority votes.

Monday's vote cleared Miranda's way to return to the central
bank. Miranda has had a prominent decision-making role at the
bank since 1997, until her departure last year as her term ended.

"What we want is clarification from Miranda over allegations
questioning her credibility and ethics. This is important so
Miranda does not feel pressure while serving her post for the
next five years," Reform faction lawmaker Hakam Naja told the
session.

Later, Hakam told reporters that allegations were afloat that
Miranda had violated central bank regulations during her last
post as BI deputy governor.

"For instance, it is reported that she was involved in foreign
exchange transactions during her tenure. She has also been
accused of signing on as a private partner with a new company.

"We questioned her over these matters during a fit and proper
test by (House) Commission IX, but maybe because she was not
fully prepared, we did not get satisfying answers," he said.

Miranda was appointed earlier this month by Commission IX on
financial affairs -- also through a vote -- to replace Anwar
Nasution, whose five-year term will end on July 27. She beat out
two other candidates: Budi Rochadi, head of the BI representative
office in Tokyo, and BI deputy Hartadi A. Sarwono.

Non-governmental organizations Transparency International
Indonesia, the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance
and the Professional Society Grouping said previously that the
three candidates were not fit for the post for various reasons,
including a doubt over their integrity.