PKB faction countersues former chairman Matori

PKB faction countersues former chairman Matori

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The National Awakening Party (PKB) camp under Alwi Shihab is
countersuing former chairman Matori Abdul Djalil for using the
party's symbol and logo for his own political group.

PKB deputy chairman Mahfud MD said on Monday the party had
appointed noted lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis to prepare the lawsuit,
to be filed with the South Jakarta District Court next week.

Mahfud said all chances of reconciliation between the two
sides had passed due to the legal dispute.

Matori, who chairs a party splinter group, had earlier filed a
lawsuit against the party following the inauguration of Cholil
Bisri as a People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) deputy speaker
representing the party last week.

Bisri was nominated by Alwi's camp to replace Matori, who was
fired for supporting the MPR's move to dismiss then president
Abdurrahman Wahid, or Gus Dur as he is familiarly known, who is
the party's founder, last year.

The dismissal was ostensibly triggered by the misuse of Rp 35
billion in non-budgetary funds belonging to the State Logistics
Agency (Bulog), a scandal that allegedly involved Gus Dur. The
Attorney General had already cleared Gus Dur of any role in the
case, known as Buloggate I, when the MPR impeached him.

Matori said the Alwi camp did not have any legitimacy because
it had supported Abdurrahman's state of emergency decree, which
had then been annulled by the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, Mahfud said Matori could rejoin the party by
following the normal procedures, which included a six-month
probation period after enrollment.

Earlier in the day, Matori, who is the defense minister, hit
back at the Alwi faction, which had called for a Cabinet
reshuffle, saying that major progress had been made by "those in
Kuningan" through their recognition of President Megawati
Soekarnoputri's leadership.

Matori was referring to the PKB under Alwi, whose offices are
located on Jl. H.R. Rasuna Said, Kuningan, South Jakarta.

Alwi said the reshuffle should include Matori's dismissal for
incompetence.

The PKB has refused to recognize the MPR special session and
the ensuing political processes, which included Megawati's
appointment as the president. Later on, it said the rise of
Megawati was a political reality that had to be accepted.

"At the time, those in Kuningan boycotted the MPR special
session and refused to recognize the present government, and now
they are starting to show concern about the Cabinet. That's good
progress," Matori told reporters after opening a seminar here.

"It would be much better if they came the full circle and
recognized the legality of last year's MPR special session and
the present government, and beg for the people's pardon for the
material and political losses the country had to suffer as a
result of the Buloggate I scandal," Matori said.