MPR committee wraps up constitutional amendment
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The People's Consultative Assembly's ad hoc committee in charge of constitutional amendment (PAH I) endorsed on Thursday the final draft of changes to the 1945 Constitution and said it was ready to submit it to the MPR Annual Session for deliberation and endorsement.
The endorsement was taken in a plenary meeting of PAH I, led by the committee chairman Jacob Tobing and attended by all the factions in the Assembly.
The factions agreed to change 27 articles in the fourth constitutional amendment, though there was disagreement on some articles, including the mechanism of presidential election.
He said those articles would be discussed in next month's Annual Session.
Jacob noted most factions had agreed the public would vote in the second round of a presidential election, which takes place if no candidates for president/vice president win a simple majority vote. Only the top two pairs are eligible for the runoff.
"Formally, we have yet to achieve absolute agreement on that article, but I'm convinced it is just a matter of the factions' internal decision-making process," Jacob told The Jakarta Post.
Jacob, a senior legislator from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), said that 90 percent of the factions supported the idea of a presidential election except representatives of the Indonesian Military and National Police.
"They have scheduled an internal meeting with their leaders. I believe they will agree with the idea. We will also be lobbying during the Annual Session," he said.
The committee also retained two alternatives on another contentious article on the composition of the MPR.
According to committee deputy chairman Slamet Effendy Yusuf of the Golkar Party, other non-conclusive articles include those on the monetary authority (the central bank), religion and the national education system.
Meanwhile, other articles have mostly been agreed upon, Slamet said.
He added that most of the factions had also agreed to abolish the Supreme Advisory Board (DPA).
"We have agreed on a new advisory board," he said, but declined to elaborate.
The constitutional amendment draft from PAH I will be brought up at the MPR's Annual Session in early August for further deliberation and approval.
The Annual Session will also debate and approve four drafts of MPR decrees prepared by the Assembly's PAH II on preparing decrees and regulations.
PAH II chairman Rambe Kamarulzaman of the Golkar Party said in PAH II's plenary session the draft decrees would include one on policy recommendations for national economic recovery.
He added that the Annual Session would last 10 days, not 12 days as initially scheduled.
Reports have said the ten-day event will allegedly cost Rp 19.8 billion.
President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Vice President Hamzah Haz will attend the entire session.
Both are also scheduled to present their progress report before legislators.
Two most contentious articles of the fourth constitutional amendment package
Article 2
Alternative 1: MPR consists of members of the House of Representatives (DPR) and the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) elected through general elections, plus interest groups elected by the DPR as regulated further by law.
Alternative 2: MPR consists of members of the DPR and the DPD elected through general elections as regulated further by law.
Article 6A:
Alternative 1: In the event that no presidential and vice presidential pair is elected, the MPR elects the president and vice president from the two pairs of presidential and vice presidential candidates gaining the most votes.
Alternative 2: In the case of no presidential and vice presidential pair being elected, the people will directly elect the president and vice president from the two pairs of the presidential and vice presidential candidates gaining the most votes in this election is officially declared president and vice president.