Next president must get full support: Think tank

Next president must get full support: Think tank

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In this year's direct presidential election, the nation should
vote for the candidate who faces the least resistance, a national
think tank group says.
Deputy chairman of the alumni of National Resilience Institute
(Lemhannas) Burhanuddin Napitupulu said here that widespread
acceptance of the new president's would enable him or her to lead
the nation to recovery.

"A presidential candidate will assume power and emerge as a
strong leader only if he or she wins the full support of the
people," he said.

Burhanuddin was speaking after a meeting with People's
Consultative Assembly speaker Amien Rais, who was invited to
speak at the alumni group's convention in Yogyakarta at the end
of this month. Fellow graduates, including Rosita Noer and
Sarnubi Hasyim, were also present at the meeting.

During the convention the Lemhannas alumni would also suggest
that the next president's capability be measured by their vision,
mission, and consistency, Burhanuddin said.

Other important criteria would be a clean track record,
transparency, accountability, and the ability to communicate, he
added.

"That is our message, that people in the country should only
choose quality presidential candidates," he said.

Lemhannas is a state institution which regularly provides
short courses for state officials before their promotion and
provides the government with a strategic review of its
performance. Today, the number of its graduates reaches 3,500,
most of them occupy strategic posts in the bureaucracy, military
or police.

Burhanuddin added that the convention would be preceded by a
seminar on Jan. 21.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri is slated to deliver a
keynote speech during the convention, while Yogyakarta Governor
Sultan Hamengkubuwono X is expected to address another session.

Amien will speak about the character of the national
leadership.

Commenting on the planned convention, Amien said he expected
the criteria for the next president would help the voters
identify qualified figures.

Amien, a presidential candidate from the National Mandate
Party (PAN), warned that the Lemhanas alumni could draft a more
objective criteria for president than those proposed by other
institutions.

"The criteria will be biased if it is proposed by political
parties, and will be too academic if it is drafted by scholars,"
Amien said.