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)