President set to chair first Cabinet meeting since censure
President set to chair first Cabinet meeting since censure
JAKARTA (JP): Saturday morning's Cabinet meeting could be a
key event, especially if both President Abdurrahman Wahid and
Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri attend, as it is the first
one since the House of Representatives issued the second
memorandum of censure against the President.
The President is due to chair the Cabinet meeting, which is
officially scheduled to discuss the 2001 draft budget revision
before it is presented to the House.
However, many expect the question of the censure to be a
highlight in discussions at the meeting.
But as of Friday evening the Vice President's attendance
remained in question.
According to sources at Merdeka Selatan Palace, the Vice
President's office, the Cabinet meeting has not been entered into
her schedule.
"We usually obtain her official schedule for the next day one
day beforehand. However, until now, she still does not have an
official schedule for tomorrow (Saturday)," a protocol official
at her office remarked.
Megawati came down with the flu just days before the House
debate on the censure on Monday, conveniently excusing her from
having to confer with the President on the sensitive issue.
Through her party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
(PDI Perjaungan) she has signaled overtly political intent by
taking up initiatives to plan a meeting with other political
party leaders.
On Friday afternoon, Megawati chaired a party meeting at its
headquarters on Jl. Pecenongan, Central Jakarta, which officially
discussed a bill on Aceh and Irian Jaya.
Should she be absent on Saturday, it could also cast a shadow
on revisions to the budget.
Ministry of Finance Director General of Financial Institutions
Darmin Nasution disclosed that the Cabinet needed approval from
both the President and Vice President before it could present the
2001 revised budget plan to the House.
Among the revisions planned will be a higher assumed exchange
rate of the rupiah against the greenback, a higher than expected
inflation rate and the lowering of forecast economic growth.
Supersemar
Earlier on Friday morning, Megawati visited the National
Achives office in South Jakarta, where she specifically
instructed its chief Mukhlis Paeni to find out what happened to
the original historic March 11 Executive Order (Supersemar)
document.
First president Sukarno, Megawati's father, signed the decree
on March 11, 1966, in which he ordered the Army's Strategic
Reserves Commander Lt. Gen. Soeharto to restore order in Jakarta,
following the abortive Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) coup the
previous year.
Soeharto used the order to effectively take over power from
Sukarno.
Oddly, the whereabouts of the original of the controversial
document remain a mystery. Only a copy is available to this day.
"That is one document which is still not kept in this place.
It is a part of the country's documentation of history," Megawati
said, referring to the Supersemar document.
Mukhlis conceded that his office had not been able to find the
original text.
"Ibu Megawati promised to help in arranging meetings with
people who may be able to help us to find the original text,"
Mukhlis said. (dja/prb)