President hails DPA proposal on First Minister

President hails DPA proposal on First Minister

JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid welcomed on Monday a
proposal from the Supreme Advisory Council (DPA) to appoint a
First Prime Minister in the cabinet to help manage the country.

Council chairman Achmad Tirtosudiro said the President was
happy with the recommendation because the presence of a "first
minister" would reduce his burden especially when handling
technical affairs.

Speaking to journalists after meeting with the President,
Achmad said Abdurrahman asked the council leader to consult
directly with the People's Consultative Assembly and the House of
Representatives about the suggestion.

"He (Abdurrahman) welcomed the idea with full joy, because
with the existence of a Menteri Pertama (First Minister), the
President and Vice President would be liberated from technical
details and could concentrate on tackling more fundamental
problems," Achmad said.

According to Achmad the appointment of a first minister would
not violate the country's presidential system, as mandated by the
1945 Constitution, as the President would remain in charge of the
government's affairs.

He pointed out that Indonesia for four years in the early
1960s had a Prime Minister, Djuanda, who was responsible to
President Sukarno.

"And one of his concrete achievements was the Jatiluhur
project," he said referring to Jatiluhur dam in Purwakarta, West
Java.

The idea of having a first minister was considered by
Abdurrahman in March when he said he would like to see Vice
President Megawati Soekarnoputri assume a more active role in the
government as prime minister.

"I need to emphasize here that in the Cabinet, I pointed out
that Vice President Megawati also functions as prime minister,"
Abdurrahman asserted after chairing a weekly Cabinet meeting.

The early years of the young Indonesian republic also saw
variations of the government system, giving the proposal an
historical precedence.

Indonesia had several prime ministers after its independence
in 1945 until the early 1060s. From November 1945 to December
1949 Sukarno, Megawati's father, appointed several prime
ministers whose Cabinets were responsible directly to the
President.

From January 1948 to December 1949, for example, Indonesia's
first Vice President, Mohammad Hatta, served as vice president
and prime minister.

"The prime minister would handle the government's daily
affairs, but would remain responsible to the President," Achmad
said about the first minister's role in the government.

Achmad, who is also chairman of the Association of Indonesian
Muslim Intellectuals (ICMI) played down fears that the presence
of a first minister would erode the vice president's role saying
it was merely a technical matter.

The suggestion has come at a time when Abdurrahman's casual
leadership style is coming under great scrutiny due to his
controversial and often contradictory remarks. (prb)