Open vote on presidential accountability proposed

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) on Wednesday proposed an open vote to decide the fate of President Abdurrahman Wahid's administration next month, preempting any possibility that faction members would vote across party lines.

The proposal was immediately welcomed by People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien Rais despite the fact that the Assembly's standing orders clearly state that voting on presidential accountability should be by secret ballot.

Amien went further by suggesting that at the start of the special session of the Assembly on Aug. 1, Assembly members should swiftly amend the standing orders to pave the way for an open vote.

"For the sake of transparency and to avoid the possibility of money politics during the special session, maybe we should amend the Assembly's standing orders so that we can have an open vote," Amien said on Wednesday.

The Assembly will convene a special session to demand that the President account for his period in office. If Assembly members vote to reject the account he gives, Abdurrahman could be removed from office.

The Assembly's standing orders stipulate that all matters concerning individuals and important issues of state should be decided by secret ballot.

During the 1999 special session, then President B.J. Habibie's accountability statement was rejected following a secret ballot.

Amien defended his proposal which many say would see the Assembly's standing orders changed merely for the sake of convenience. He gave no specific reason as to why such a change was necessary other than in the interests of transparency.

"I think the idea should be supported as we need transparency and it will make the session more legitimate as we will be able to avoid back-door politicking ... Especially since there have been rumors that money politics will rear its head at the session," he asserted.

Meanwhile, PDI Perjuangan Secretary-General Soetjipto also insisted that the party's suggestion of having an open ballot during the vote on whether to accept Abdurrahman's statement of accountability was designed to ensure transparency.

He pointed out that it would allow individual faction members to also be held accountable by the people.

Sources told The Jakarta Post that PDI Perjuangan Chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri had specified the need for an open vote to avoid the possibility of any of its 185 faction members voting against the party line.

The sources said that there were fears that as many as 90 faction members could deviate from the stated party position.

Should Abdurrahman's accountability statement be rejected, Megawati as Vice President would have the most to gain as she is next in line to become president.

During the party's meeting on Monday night, Megawati underlined the need for unity within the party and ordered all members to speak with a single voice during the session.

Soetjipto however denied speculation about cracks within the party, especially as regards Megawati.

Meanwhile it was also reported that the 130 Regional Representatives, who are expected to establish their own faction at the session, will likely vote in support of Abdurrahman.

The Regional Representatives faction was dissolved in 1999 and their members were transferred to party factions. However, intensive lobbying will likely see the faction revived.

President Abdurrahman has so far been defiant saying that while the Assembly can convene a special session, it has no right to call him to account at this juncture.

He argued that he is only required to account for his administration at the end of his presidential term in 2004.

If the President fails to present a statement of accountability, the Assembly can directly revoke his presidential mandate and appoint the Vice President to succeed him.

Under such a scenario, the Assembly on Aug. 3 would elect a new vice president and then swear in both the new president and vice president before closing the session.

Another possibility would see the special session last for five days with a presidential accountability statement being presented and then accepted by the Assembly.

The final scenario is a protracted session which would see Abdurrahman's accountability statement rejected. In such a case, the country could have a new president and vice president by Aug. 7. (dja)