Indonesia needs a prime minister
Indonesia needs a prime minister
Noted experts and officials meeting in Bali over the weekend
offered recommendations to help the nation escape its current
crisis. Mochtar Pabottingi, senior researcher at the National
Institute of Sciences analyses the recommendations.
Question: How do you read the recommendations put forward by
the National Dialog Forum?
Mochtar: They look good. But the forum's participants made
recommendations on three sectors (politics, legal and economics)
at once and, whether or not a priority is set, the
recommendations will be difficult to implement effectively. The
forum's implicit recommendation to maintain Abdurrahman "Gus Dur"
Wahid as head of government up to 2004 may cause difficulties. We
have to appoint a prime minister as head of government.
Q: How should the recommendations read?
M: They should have focused on the improvement of law enforcement
because our economic, political, legal and leadership problems
have been caused by poor law enforcement. Rather than being the
source of justice, laws thus far have become the source of
injustice.
Q: Could you elaborate?
A: To talk straight, I would say that all the institutions
related to law enforcement must be shaken up because their
officials have so far practiced synergic collaboration for
corruption and betrayal of the republic. All the high-ranking --
echelons one and two -- officials in the prosecutors office, the
police and courts, for example, must be replaced except a very
few who are really credible.
With new credible leaders, those law enforcement institutions
will be able to bring major corruptors and human rights violators
to court and punish them. Such seriousness by the authorities in
enforcing the laws will deter business and political actors from
becoming involved in new corruption and human rights violations.
If we put priority on economic development without improving
law enforcement, corrupt officials and businesspeople will
continue their bad conduct because rules of the game remain as
usual.
Q: Should we also make changes in laws?
A: The most important thing is that we must amend our 1945
Constitution to guarantee the supremacy of law. Our current
constitution does not have any articles that guarantee the
sovereignty of the people, protects against abuse of power and
protects human rights.
Q: Why do you think we need to change Gus Dur as head of the
government?
A: Gus Dur apparently has no capacity to rule the country. If we
continue with Gus Dur as head of the government for another four
years, with his controversial statements and inconsistent
political practices, I'm afraid social problems will accumulate
and troubles may explode. But toppling him from the presidency
also would be dangerous because it would set a bad precedence and
his supporters would run amok. As a consequence, the country
would plunge into chaos and we don't want that to happen.
Q: What solution do you offer?
A: To save the country, we should retain Gus Dur as head of state
and Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri as his deputy. But at
the same time, we should select a prime minister, not a first
minister (menteri pertama) as suggested by others, including
Supreme Advisory Council (DPA) chairman Achmad Tirtosudiro, to
lead the government under a parliamentary cabinet system. If we
appointed a first minister, instead of a prime minister, we would
continue with the presidential cabinet system, under which Gus
Dur would still have opportunity to intervene in government
policies.
Q: How can our constitution allow such a parliamentary cabinet
system?
A: The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), while amending the
Constitution of 1945 for permanent implementation, should make a
temporary amendment based on necessity and expediency (not by
design and preference) to allow the implementation of a
parliamentary cabinet system until 2004.
Q: How would the MPR appoint a prime minister after amending the
constitution?
A: The MPR, which represents the people's sovereignty, can change
its coming annual General Session in August into an extraordinary
session for the nomination of a prime minister.
Q: How can the MPR have an extraordinary session without evidence
that the President has violated the constitution? Can the House
of Representatives (DPR) ask the MPR to hold an extraordinary
session following the exercise of its interpellation right later
this month?
A: The issue to be raised at the coming interpellation session
(related to the firing of former minister of industry and trade
Yusuf Kalla and former state minister of investment and state
enterprises Laksamana Sukardi) is too trivial to be used as
reason for that. The MPR itself can change its August meeting
into an extraordinary session for the reason that Gus Dur's
government has no sense of urgency for the recovery of the
country from its crisis.
Q: Who do you think is the most appropriate to be appointed as
prime minister?
A: I cannot mention a name but a law expert with high credibility
and reputation should get high priority to be nominated as prime
minister for the time being. (Rikza Abdullah)