Succession predicted to go smoothly
Succession predicted to go smoothly
JAKARTA (JP): A cabinet minister's prediction that Indonesia
will be safe after President Soeharto is no longer in power found
support from a top military official and senior politician
yesterday.
Armed Forces Chief for Sociopolitical Affairs Lt. Gen. Syarwan
Hamid and chief of the United Development Party Ismail Hasan
Metareum said Indonesia's best and brightest son would eventually
shine when Soeharto fades from the political scene.
Syarwan and Metareum were separately commenting on the
prediction by State Minister of Research and Technology B.J.
Habibie, President Soeharto's confidant.
"In the eyes of the Armed Forces, currently no other figures
in the country match President Soeharto. But I believe that the
right person will appear as his replacement when the right time
comes," Syarwan said.
Habibie said Wednesday that there was no need to worry about
how national development and politics would fare once Soeharto
and the 1945 Generation of current leaders are no longer in
power.
Maintaining that there would still be sustainable development
and political stability after the 1945 Generation era was over,
Habibie called on both local and foreign investors not to worry
about starting or continuing their investment in Indonesia.
The "1945 Generation" refers to people who took part in the
struggle for independence. Soeharto is one of the few leaders
still in power from the generation.
Habibie, who leads the powerful Association of Indonesian
Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI), is one of several leaders that
political observers believe have the ambition to become the next
vice president.
The presidential election will take place in March 1998.
Soeharto has already secured strong support from numerous
organizations under the dominant Golkar political organization
and Moslem groups.
Unchallenged
Soeharto has been in power for 30 years unchallenged. It is
widely expected that he will retain his post. The speculation is
who will be elected vice president.
Metareum said his Moslem-oriented party supports Soeharto
because the President has proved to be able to maintain national
stability and develop the economy.
"I agree with Habibie," he told journalists. He also agreed
that Indonesians need not worry about who will be their next
president after Soeharto.
There won't be any political chaos during presidential
succession, as some people predict, he added.
On the vice-presidential candidacy, Syarwan said the post is
open for all eligible Indonesian citizens from both civilian and
military backgrounds.
He added, however, to become a vice president, one has to be
acceptable to all spectrums of the Indonesian society and must
have an international reputation as a statesman.
He denied speculations that the Armed Forces has collaborated
with ICMI on who they would support for the vice-presidential
post.
"We, the Armed Forces, believe the most important thing is to
guarantee that the process of succession takes place
constitutionally. (imn)