Nominate candidates early: Rudini

Nominate candidates early: Rudini

JAKARTA (JP): Nominations for president and vice president
should be made during the election campaign, from April 27,
because it will help the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR)
elect the nation's leaders next March, former minister of home
affairs Rudini said yesterday.

"This way, MPR members will know the candidates when the
assembly begins," he told reporters yesterday.

Assuming that President Soeharto would be reelected, Rudini
said, the People's Consultative Assembly would only need to
consult with Soeharto on vice-presidential candidates.

He said that announcing candidates now was not illegal because
no regulations prohibited.

The chair of the House Commission I for security and political
affairs, Aisyah Aminy, said that naming presidential and vice-
presidential candidates was part of political openness.

"Naming candidates during the election campaign is very
important for helping people develop political maturity," she
said in Yogyakarta yesterday after a seminar on campaigning.

Aisyah said a transparent process to elect a president and
vice president was in line with demands for more political
openness.

"People will then be able to follow all stages of the
presidential and vice-presidential elections," she said.

She said the public could also make suggestion to improve or
correct the election process.

The deputy secretary-general of the dominant Golkar, Theo L.
Sambuaga, said Golkar would not disclose its candidates for the
presidency or vice-presidency until the MPR's general session
starts next year.

"Political parties are supposed to promote their programs in
the election campaign, not name their presidential and vice-
presidential candidates," he was quoted by Antara as saying.

Members of the 1,000-strong MPR will meet in March next year
to elect a new president and vice president, and to establish
five-yearly state guidelines.

Chairman of the House of Representatives' Armed Forces faction
Suparman Achmad said it was unethical for political parties to
announce their candidates now, when the President and Vice
President were still in office.

"It's not our culture," he said.

The secretary-general of the influential Association of
Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI), Adi Sasono, said in
Surabaya yesterday that the association would not nominate
anybody for the presidency or vice-presidency.

"ICMI will never jump into practical politics," he said.

The secretary-general of the General Elections Institute,
Suryatna Subrata, said Tuesday the three political groupings were
free to announce their presidential and vice-presidential
candidates during the campaign period.

The campaign period will start April 27 and end May 23 this
year. There will be a cooling-off period of five days before
election day.

The secretary-general of the Indonesian Democratic Party,
Buttu R. Hutapea, said the party had decided to renominate
Soeharto for the presidency, and would nominate a candidate for
the vice-presidency at its leadership meeting early next year.
(imn/har)

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