PPP's comic tragedy

The United Development Party (PPP) seems to be having a problem fulfilling the promises it made during the May general election campaign to sponsor political reform. Heading the strongest political group outside the government, many PPP leaders, especially those who head provincial chapters, feel the burden to keep their promise to the public.

The PPP made an impressive showing during the polls, not only because its rival, the Indonesian Democratic Party, was busy making peace with itself after chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri was ousted in a government-backed congress last year, but also due to public belief that it had the ability to push through reforms to change the status quo.

Although it's members number no more than 134 in the 1,000- strong People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) -- which is the country's highest law-making body that will elect a president and vice president in March -- the PPP has tried to introduce some concepts for reform.

But once the PPP's agenda recently moved to the nomination of the country's next president and vice president, its leaders failed to reach a consensus. After prolonged debate, the party failed to announce its candidates as planned Tuesday for the nation's two most important jobs, although it promised to do so in due course.

It is not too early to make such an announcement now or in the near future. In 1991, for example, the party announced its support for Soeharto's reelection even though the Assembly was not to meet for another two years to vote on the issue.

The PPP's tardiness seems to have been caused by its failure to reach a consensus on the matter in its leadership meeting. Reports indicate that only six out of the 27 PPP chapters, which have been monitoring public opinion in their respective constituencies, supported the incumbent's reelection. The rest refused to name a candidate before the Assembly met because "they did not want to disappoint the voters' expectations for change".

The outcome, of course, was not a blatant rejection of Soeharto. The leaders, in going as far as they did to show a spirit of reform, said that if they had not done anything they would have been attacked by their supporters when they went home.

It is clear that there is a strong public undercurrent for political reform, but the PPP's provincial leaders have taken care not to give an impression of confrontation with the current system. They seem to be looking to the party's central board to take further steps.

To what extent will the PPP's executive board be brave enough to voice its understanding of the voters' aspirations? It too fully understands that any hint of confrontation with the government would jeopardized its standing.

Many observers believe the executive board depends heavily on its chairman, Ismail Hasan Metareum, who is known for his readiness to compromise with the nation's power holders.

Ismail has admitted that he is not a Jailany Naro -- his predecessor who demonstrated the courage to challenge the government when the party nominated him for vice president, a move which surprised the nation and upset the President.

Whatever the party's provincial leaders aspire to today, they should realize that the party is not led by a Naro, but a safety- first player, as one political observer from Yogyakarta has called Ismail.

The situation now looks more like a comic tragedy since some of the local leaders have nominated him as a candidate for vice president.