Megawati 'would be better' than Gus Dur
Megawati 'would be better' than Gus Dur
JAKARTA (JP): People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien
Rais expressed confidence on Wednesday that Vice President
Megawati Soekarnoputri would be a better leader than incumbent
President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid.
Speaking to journalists in his office, Amien assured that
Megawati would learn from Abdurrahman's mistakes and would listen
to her advisors carefully to deal with the country's myriad of
problems.
"Insya Allah (God willing) she will be a better leader (than
Abdurrahman). I expect Mbak Mega would not repeat the mistakes
made by Gus Dur, especially in carrying out the reform agenda,"
he added.
Amien said that Gus Dur had not honored the political
compromise made among the leaders before he was elected
president. Gus Dur had also failed to curb corruption, collusion
and nepotism, and had failed to maintain the supremacy of the law
and security for all citizens, he said.
Megawati had gained support from more parties in the country
following the memorandum of censure against Abdurrahman issued by
the House of Representatives (DPR) for his alleged role in two
financial scandals.
Amien, with his "Axis Force" loose coalition, nominated
Abdurrahman in the 1999 presidential election, competing against
Megawati, whose Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI
Perjuangan) won the general election.
At the time, many Islamic-based political parties and
organizations, except the largest one, the Nahdlatul Ulama,
rejected the idea of a woman president.
Amien underlined on Wednesday that the Axis Force now
sincerely supported Megawati to lead the country.
"Some of the ulemas have stated that it would be OK to have a
woman president in an 'emergency' situation. Besides, it is
mentioned in the Islamic holy Koran that man and woman are equal
in the eyes of Allah," he conceded.
Separately, State Minister of Women's Empowerment/chairwoman
of the National Family Planing Board Khofifah Indar Parawansa
said on Wednesday that political maneuvers by several Islamic
factions to support Megawati "must be observed carefully".
"This is all politics. And any such motion is actually normal
in a country that is going through the transition to democracy.
"I believe she (Megawati) will stick to the Constitution and
will be very cautious in responding to such support, especially
when the supporting groups opposed her in the 1999 race,"
Khofifah said.
State Minister of Research and Technology Muh. A.S. Hikam
separately told The Jakarta Post that Megawati was being lured by
Abdurrahman's opponents.
"They (Gus Dur's political rivals) have misread Megawati. It
is true that she is facing a tough time with factions within PDI
Perjuangan and this situation is being manipulated by the
President's opponents. But I think she will uphold the
Constitution," Hikam said.
Meanwhile, a Makassar-based sociologist said on Wednesday that
Megawati lacked the confidence to become president, despite the
opportunity facing her.
M. Darwis of Hasanuddin University in Makassar told the Post
that Megawati had too often allowed her emotions to rule her.
"She must be more rational in facing Abdurrahman, or she will
be (politically) abused. She has the opportunity to become the
next president as the image of the incumbent, President
Abdurrahman Wahid, is at its lowest point. It's time for Megawati
to take the presidential seat.
"If she just keeps silent, President Abdurrahman will always
claim that she supports him. Never expect Abdurrahman to quit.
That will never happen. It's now or never.
"Mega need not worry about being upset (by secret opponents)
in the future, if she performs well. It's time for her to prove
her capability," said Darwis.
"Legally, she is the safest choice. It's better for the
country to be led by her than to be under military rule.
"Megawati must take this opportunity, otherwise things could
backfire on her. The people will accuse her of having no public
responsibility. Her popularity would fade and she would have big
problems." (dja/edt/27/sur)