Women legislators lead charge against Akbar

Women legislators lead charge against Akbar

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A group of women legislators have taken the lead in the movement
to force out House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung over
his conviction in a Rp 40 billion corruption case.

Dwi Ria Latifa of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
(PDI Perjuangan) and Ida Fauziah of the National Awakening Party
(PKB) have circulated a motion calling for the establishment of a
disciplinary committee to determine whether Akbar should be
allowed to serve out his term as House Speaker until 2004. The
motion has been signed by women legislators from a number of
parties, including the Golkar Party, which Akbar chairs.

Ria said the proposal has received the backing of at least
three other women legislators: Eka Komariah Kuncoro of Golkar,
Nurdiati Akma of the Reform Faction and Tari Siwi Utami of PKB.

Ria, Ida and Marwah Daud Ibrahim, an outspoken critic of Akbar
in the Golkar Party, have fiercely opposed Akbar's leadership in
the legislative body, but have received no support from the
majority of legislators.

"We are upset by the lack of courage on the part of the male
legislators to take the initiate to propose such a motion," said
Dwi, accompanied by Ida, at her office in the House here on
Wednesday.

According to the House's internal rulings, at least 10
legislators must sign the motion before it can be processed by
the steering committee (Bamus). Then it can be brought to a
plenary session where a decision can be made on whether to accept
or reject the motion.

Legislators, mostly from the PKB and minor parties, have
introduced similar motions in the past, but they failed to gain
the necessary support to force Bamus to bring them to a plenary
session.

A district court sentenced Akbar to three years in prison for
misusing Rp 40 billion of State Logistics Agency (Bulog) funds.
The Jakarta High Court upheld the sentence last week and Akbar
has filed a final appeal with the Supreme Court.

Akbar has declined to step down, saying the case occurred in
1999 when he was minister/state secretary, making it a past
offense that is not regulated by the House's internal rulings.

Akbar's case is the latest blow to its image that the House
has suffered over the last three years.

Among its other public relations disasters were high
absenteeism among legislators, a bribery case implicating House
Commission IX for financial affairs and a financial scandal
involving PT QSAR and House Deputy Speaker Tosary Widjaya.

However, not all of the news coming from the House is bad. Ria
and Ida, for their part, have vowed to continue to seek the
necessary support to bring their proposal to a House plenary
session.