PDI'boycot threat brushed aside

PDI'boycot threat brushed aside

JAKARTA (JP): Governor of the National Defense Institute
(Lemhanas) Lt. Gen. Moetojib has brushed aside a threat by the
Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) to boycott the 1997 election in
protest against the government's meddling in its internal
problems.

"I would say that the threat was a mere emotional statement,"
Moetojib said when addressing a workshop of the Moslem
educational organization, Muhammadiyah, in the East Java town of
Malang yesterday.

He added that the minority party's maneuver would not
undermine the nation's resilience in the run-up to the 1997
general elections.

The threat was made last week by senior legislators from PDI,
Yahya Nasution and Aberson Marle Sihaloho, who were angered by
what many party officials see as government intervention in its
internal affairs.

They were upset at the government's refusal to recognize
Sucipto as the legitimate chief of PDI's East Java chapter on the
grounds that the post was also claimed by Latief Pudjosakti.

The government's stand keeps the leadership conflict within
the nationalist-Christian alliance glowing.

At first, the local government favored Latief, an ardent
critic of PDI chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri -- the one who
appointed Sucipto after a congress failed to elect a new chapter
chief several months ago. But when the crisis worsened, the
government announced that it supports neither Sucipto nor Latief.

The PDI central executive board is split into two camps in
handling the crisis, with one spearheaded by Gerry Mbatemooy
supporting Latief and the other backing Sucipto.

Last week, Megawati fired Gerry for inaugurating Latief. She
also sacked Latief for disciplinary reasons.

Moetojib said that PDI officials should think about possible
consequences before making statements, Antara reported. (pan)