Megawati likely to win popular support: Scholar
Megawati likely to win popular support: Scholar
SEMARANG (JP): Megawati Soekarnoputri, the chairperson of the
Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), is likely to win widespread
support if she decides to run in the presidential election in
1998, political observer Arief Budiman said yesterday.
Support for Megawati will come not only because many people
are craving for a change in the national leadership, but also
because many people believe she has the necessary qualifications,
Arief said.
Megawati has done considerably well in leading the PDI given
the difficult circumstances facing the party these past two
years, said the former staff lecturer at the Satyawacana
Christian University in Salatiga.
"I'm confident that if Megawati accepts the presidential
nomination during the general election in 1997, many people will
rally to her," Arief told The Jakarta Post.
The campaign to nominate Megawati as a presidential candidate
in 1998 was started in Central Java by a number of local PDI
leaders in October. The momentum gathered pace this week when
three PDI legislators signed a petition, and forms were
distributed in Jakarta.
Megawati, who turned 49 this week, has declined to comment on
the proposed nomination. Many within the PDI are also playing
safe by refraining from commenting on the subject.
Defiance
The daughter of the former president Sukarno swept to the PDI
leadership during a congress in late 1993 by supporters in
defiance of the government's wish to have a person of its choice
in the post.
By law, only a faction in the People's Consultative Assembly
can formally nominate someone. It is scheduled to meet in March
1998 to elect the president and the vice president. President
Soeharto has been elected five times unopposed; on each occasion
he was the candidate of all the five factions -- PDI, Golkar, the
United Development Party (PPP), the Armed Forces and the Regional
Representatives.
Senior government officials have also been reluctant to
comment on the proposal to nominate Megawati for president.
Comment
M. Sudibyo, the chief of the State Intelligence Coordinating
Body, told reporters yesterday that since Megawati had not
commented, those outside the PDI should also refrain from
speaking publicly on the issue.
Sudibyo said the government is sticking to formal procedures
and that nominations are not due until the Assembly's meeting in
1998.
Minister of Home Affairs Moch. Yogie S.M. reportedly said
earlier this week that the proposal was not good for democracy
because it was being coordinated without following proper
procedures.
More than a dozen organizations have called on the incumbent
74-year old Soeharto to continue to lead the nation when his
current five year term ends in 1998.
Arief believes that Megawati has what it takes to become
president, particularly when compared to other present-day
political figures. "She does not make bombastic statements, she
has shown patience and perseverance in dealing with conflicts
raging inside and outside the party, she's got that motherly
attitude and has a charisma of her own.
"She has the support of members of the intellectual elite and
from those who are calling for changes in Indonesian politics,
particularly youths and students," he said.
On the question of a woman being president, Arief pointed to
Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Philippines where women have been
accepted in the highest office.
He said the current conflict in the PDI chapter in East Java
will be the main test for Megawati. "If she survives the next 12
months, then she will become a viable alternative leader for
Indonesia." (har/pan/emb)