Legislators slammed over petition

Legislators slammed over petition

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Observers have criticized House of Representatives members for
going ahead with their plan to summon President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono to explain his position on the chief of the Indonesian
Military (TNI).

The Nationhood Coalition faction and the National Awakening
Party (PKB) oppose Susilo's decision to revoke a letter by former
president Megawati Soekarnoputri to the House. The letter would
have changed the guard in the powerful TNI.

The move to summon Susilo was a political maneuver and not in
the interests of the people, activists and experts said on
Sunday.

"This is a psy(chological)-war between a group of legislators
and the new administration. It is difficult to figure out how the
maneuver will benefit the nation," Andalas University legal
expert and antigraft activist Saldi Isra said.

Megawati's letter issued on Oct. 15 before she stepped down
replaced TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto with Army chief Gen.
Ryamizard Ryacudu, after Endriartono earlier announced his
resignation from the job.

A group of 55 legislators submitted the petition on Friday to
House Speaker Agung Laksono, who later said he would schedule the
item for discussion at a House plenary session next week.

An earlier plenary meeting had assigned the House's defense
commission to deliberate Megawati's letter, despite it having
been withdrawn by Susilo, who wants Endriartono to stay at the
TNI's helm for the meantime.

On Friday, the defense commission comprising only lawmakers
from the Nationhood Coalition plus the National Awakening Party
(PKB) endorsed Ryamizard as the new TNI commander. The approval
will be further discussed soon at a House plenary session.

Article 169 of the House's standing orders states that at
least 13 House members can propose a petition for the House to
summon the President over an important and strategic government
policy that affects the entire nation.

Summoning a president is a serious move and normally occurs
only in situations when presidents could be seen as acting
against the interests of the nation.

"But, the petition recently filed by lawmakers has nothing to
do with the interests of the people at large. The legislators
must have understood that," Saldi told The Jakarta Post.

He said the House's plan to summon Susilo would be irrelevant
"because the President has given his explanation directly or
through his ministers (to the people) about his decision to
revoke Megawati's letter".

Also criticizing the petition was Center for Electoral Reform
(CETRO) deputy director Hadar N. Gumay, who said the legislators
had not distinguished which issues were important to the people.

Although House members had the right to submit such a petition
to summon the President, they should be careful deciding when to
do it, he said.

"The legislators must listen to the aspirations of the people,
otherwise the public will distrust them," Hadar said.

In its role of scrutinizing the executive, the House has the
right to launch an inquiry, make a statement, draft bills, and
summon the President in order to seek explanations.

In 1999, then-president BJ Habibie was summoned to give an
explanation before a House plenary session over the result of the
United Nations-sponsored ballot in which East Timor voted for
independence from Indonesia.

Habibie's successor, Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, was also
summoned by the House to clarify his decision to dismiss two of
his ministers, Laksamana Sukardi and Jusuf Kalla, from the
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Golkar
Party respectively.

During Megawati's presidency, a group of legislators also
proposed the House summon her over the loss of the Sipadan and
Ligitan islands to Malaysia.

However, the proposal was rejected by majority of House
members.