Pressure escalates as Akbar refuses to quit

Berni K. Moestafa and Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

As disgraced House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung continued to turn a deaf ear to the mounting calls for him to step down, representatives of dozens of legislators will submit on Monday their petition against him to the House's steering committee.

Legislators have moved in recent days to collect signatures in support of a petition that will demand Akbar to quit his post at the House.

The number of signatures collected for a vote of no confidence up until Friday afternoon was reported to be 85, 36 of which came from members of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan).

Susono Yusuf of the National Awakening Party (PKB), who initiated the move, said that the petition would be submitted to House leaders on Monday no matter how many legislators put their names down.

People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Amien Rais said on Saturday that the petition would have an impact on Akbar if the number of signatures reached 150.

Amien, who chairs the National Mandate Party (PAN), said that he had told legislators from PAN to back the move.

The Reform faction, which consists of legislators from PAN and the Justice Party, has given Akbar one week to resign or else it will move to unseat him.

But Akbar has retaliated, saying that anyone who tried to force him to step down had no idea about the House's internal regulations.

"This is a legal matter. There is no regulation that can force me to quit the post until a final and binding verdict is handed down," Akbar told Antara at the opening of Golkar's party meeting in Pasuruan, East Java, on Sunday.

When the petition reaches the House's steering committee, the committee will make a schedule for it to be brought to a plenary session, where legislators will decide whether to continue the move or not.

Nevertheless, political observer Arbi Sanit doubted the move would lead to Akbar's ouster, saying that a political conspiracy among the factions would hamper it.

Arbi said that Akbar was one of the most loyal followers of former president Soeharto. "We hope the legislators will defend morality," he told The Jakarta Post.

Meanwhile, Akbar's faction in the House of Representatives (DPR) has threatened to shake up the country's legislature in response to the petition calling for Akbar's removal.

"If we allow these maneuvers to oust Akbar, we will retaliate by doing the same against other officials," Golkar member Ferry Mursyidan Baldan said.

He added that other legislators were no better than Akbar and that if Akbar was removed, others would follow.

"It's nothing more than a political maneuver wrapped around ethics and morality jargons," he said.

There are reports of Golkar eying to unseat legislators who frequently skip hearings but continue to receive the full perks of being a legislator.

This would put the spotlight on the House's biggest faction, PDI Perjuangan, whose members include Taufik Kiemas -- a businessman, and foremost the husband of President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Although many names on the petition are from PDI Perjuangan, the faction refrains from pushing any further than just letting its members sign the list.

Analysts have long pointed out the close yet often uneasy relationship between the two biggest parties, noting a tip in the balance of power would derail the country's hard-won political stability.

Akbar is enjoying Golkar's full backing after it was agreed on to retain his chairmanship in a meeting shortly after the verdict earlier this month.

Golkar members have been going all out to defend their embattled chairman, tirelessly repeating the fact that the House's internal rulings do not regulate the suspension of a House speaker.

"There is no ruling that requires Akbar to resign unless there is final verdict," said Antony Zeidra Abidin, another member of Golkar.

He said the efforts spent on removing Akbar were time consuming as legislators needed to get through piles of unfinished draft laws.