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This is an archive article published on December 4, 1998
Moves on his mentor
In twin moves, seen as an effort to dispel doubts as to his sincerity, Indonesian President B J Habibie announced the date for general el...
Written by Bhimanto Suwastayo
December 4, 1998 12:00 AM IST
2 min read
2 min read
In twin moves, seen as an effort to dispel doubts as to his sincerity, Indonesian President B J Habibie announced the date for general elections and ordered 8220;legal steps8221; against his mentor and predecessor, Suharto.
House Speaker Harmoko announced after meeting Habibie at the parliament that the elections pledged by the President as part of his drive for reforms, would be held on June 7, 1999. Harmoko told journalists in the presence of Habibie that the first meeting of the new People8217;s Consultative Assembly MPR that is to elect a President before the end of next year, would be held on August 29. The date left open the possibility that presidential elections could be held before Habibie8217;s own December 1999 deadline.
Habibie declined comment and referred further announcements to State Secretary Akbar Tanjung and Justice Minister Muladi. Tanjung said a presidential decree ordered Attorney General Andi Ghalib 8220;to immediately take legal steps to investigate former President Suharto who is suspected ofhaving engaged in corruption, collusion and nepotism8221;. Without spelling out what the steps entailed, Tanjung said the investigation should 8220;uphold the principles of innocent until proven guilty and respect for human rights8221;.
He said Habibie8217;s order was meant to implement an MPR decree of November 12 which specifically mentioned Suharto as a target of anti-corruption efforts. It was also issued 8220;to follow up on the various aspirations of the people,8221; Tanjung added.
The move came after a legal advisor to Suharto, Yohannes Yacob, threatened that the veteran strongman would drag key government officials down with him if he were taken to court. Habibie8217;s decree instructed Ghalib 8220;to immediately take effective and efficient steps in eradicating corruption, collusion and nepotism8221;.
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