Mari'e joins team advising Habibie

Mari'e joins team advising Habibie

JAKARTA (JP): Former minister of finance Mar'ie Muhammad has
accepted an offer by President B.J. Habibie to become a
presidential economic advisor, a minister said on Monday.

"Pak Mar'ie is still needed by the government due to his
experience, capability and thoughts in our effort to step up
economic development," Minister/State Secretary Akbar Tandjung
said after accompanying Habibie to the opening of a congress of
the Association of Indonesian Publishers (IKAPI) at Merdeka
Palace.

Mar'ie will become the President's fourth economic advisor.
The others are former coordinating ministers for economy, finance
and industry Widjojo Nitisastro and Ali Wardhana, and former
minister of finance Frans Seda. According to Antara, Habibie will
also appoint former minister/state secretary Saadilah Mursjid as
his advisor for administrative affairs.

Mar'ie, who was minister of finance from 1993 to March 1998,
met with Habibie on Saturday. He refused to talk to journalists
after the meeting despite a promise to brief them on the
discussion's results.

"In principle, Pak Mar'ie does not have any objection," Akbar
asserted.

Mar'ie could not be reached for comment because he was out of
town.

"Bapak is not in Jakarta, and I don't know how to contact him
now," his daughter told The Jakarta Post on Monday evening.

Mar'ie is known as one of among the few ministers who blocked
Habibie's projects when the latter was still state minister of
research and technology in the same cabinet.

The House of Representatives (DPR) dropped Mar'ie on Thursday
as a candidate for the chairmanship of the Supreme Audit Agency.

Habibie reportedly favors former minister of trade Satrio
"Billy" Joedono to head the agency.

Former president Soeharto dismissed Billy in 1995 as minister
of trade and then appointed him as ambassador to France. The
ministry was then merged with the ministry of industry to become
the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Mar'ie recently turned down an offer by Habibie for an
ambassadorial post in a European country, saying it was better
for him to serve in Indonesia during the economic recession.

He is currently the chairman of the Indonesian Transparency
Society, which campaigns for greater government openness.

"He can continue his job as the leader of the Indonesian
Transparency Society because we also need input from the
society," Akbar noted.

Soeharto reportedly blamed Mar'ie, nicknamed "Mr. Clean", and
former governor of Bank Indonesia Soedradjad Djiwandono as being
among the officials most responsible for the country's economic
crisis.

Soeharto also fired Soedradjad just a few weeks before the
cabinet's term expired in March. (prb)