Observers hail PDI for Megawati nomination

SEMARANG, Central Java (JP): Political observers praised the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) for having the guts to nominate chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri for presidential candidate despite realizing the move was hopeless.

Darmanto Jatman and Nurdien Kistanto of the Diponegoro University agreed that, given the current political condition, Megawati would not have a chance in the 1998 presidential election.

However, the nomination itself was a breath of fresh air considering Indonesia's tradition of having only one presidential candidate, Nurdien said.

Those who want Megawati for president, Darmanto said, "already know that it would be very difficult for her to become one, especially if Soeharto is willing to be nominated again for the 1998-2003 term".

"It was a form of political desperation," he said, adding that Megawati's supporters did not care whether she would win or lose. "What's important was nominating her. They knew that she would lose eventually."

The two observers were commenting on reports that seven branches of PDI in Central Java recently asked Megawati to run in the 1998 presidential election. The activists hailed Megawati, daughter of the late president Sukarno, as a fighter for democracy who has grassroots support.

The branch leaders said Megawati should be elected president because of her personal traits, including her simplicity and honesty.

"I wouldn't hope for much," Nurdien told The Jakarta Post on Sunday, pointing out Megawati's lack of experience and achievements as her greatest obstacles.

"Someone who's nominated for presidency should have great achievements. Statesmanship. Megawati doesn't have that yet."

However, the nomination was good for the existing political system, in the sense that it was done in order to introduce balance and democratization. "There should be more than just one candidate," Nurdien said.

President Soeharto will conclude his sixth five-year term in two years. The 1,000-strong People's Consultative Assembly will convene in 1998 to prepare the Broad Guidelines of State Policies and elect a president. Analysts and officials recently expressed that Soeharto is unbeatable.

Darmanto called the PDI branch leaders "very courageous" and said that they probably made the move out of sympathy for Megawati whose leadership has often been challenged by parties from both inside and outside the party.

"They are sympathetic toward her because she's so patient, strong and resilient in facing various troubles in the party," Darmanto said.

Darmanto noted the "uniqueness" of the move was that "it came from the lower layers of the party rather than from the top, such as the central executive board".

"This could be an indication that the grassroots of the party wish to have Megawati as leader (of the nation), while the top layers want to maintain the status quo because they have enjoyed various facilities that the government provides," Darmanto said.

"This is also proof that the middle to lower layers (of the party) want political democratization, while the elite group wants the opposite," he said.

Nurdien said the PDI would be better off nominating Soerjadi, the more experienced PDI leader who is currently the deputy House speaker. (har/swe)