Pressure escalates as Akbar refuses to quit
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.