Despite Censure, Wahid Won’t Quit

Defiant in the face of potential impeachment, Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid said Friday he will not quit despite a humiliating censure by Parliament over two corruption scandals.

He also denied lying about his role in the scandals and said lawmakers had condemned him without knowing the facts.

“I will not step down,” he said after praying at a Jakarta mosque. “I will complete my presidential term.”

His term ends in 2004.

The Parliament voted overwhelmingly to censure Wahid on Thursday, leaving the Southeast Asian nation, long racked by violence and economic crisis, facing months of political turmoil.

Wahid dismissed speculation that he planned to fire key officials and army generals, saying his opponents were spreading rumors as part of a “psychological war.”

Earlier, at the state palace, Wahid promised greater cooperation with the legislature, which accused him of breaking his oath of office and violating anti-graft laws. He has denied any wrongdoing.

He also apologized to Indonesia’s people--not for his own actions, but for the bitter standoff with the legislature that has triggered massive protests.

The demonstrations continued Friday afternoon as about 2,000 Muslim university students marched through downtown Jakarta, chanting, “Wahid must go!”

Though an investigative committee of lawmakers presented no conclusive evidence that Wahid benefited, it said he was involved in the illegal transfer of $4 million from the coffers of the state food agency by a former business associate.

It also accused him of failing to officially declare a $2-million aid donation from Sultan Sir Hasanal Bolkiah, the ruler of neighboring oil-rich Brunei.

The Parliament voted 393-4 to accept the findings of the inquiry. Forty-three deputies from Wahid’s party walked out before the vote.

Aides said that Wahid would fight on and that the Cabinet and the military remained loyal to the nearly blind Muslim leader.

Presidential spokesman Wimar Witoelar said Wahid would meet the legislature’s demands to explain his role in the scandals. If he does not do so within 90 days, the legislature can censure him again. A month after that, it can start impeachment proceedings.

“There are people who talk about public lies and words that are not ethical at all,” Wahid said Friday. “It is a shame that the factions used data from [the inquiry] which is not based on facts.”

Top security minister Gen. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Wahid had already prepared political and legal responses.

“Parliament’s decision is nothing to worry about,” Yudhoyono said after meeting with Wahid on Friday. “The government is functioning normally.”

Still, Minister of Justice Yusril Ihza Mahendra--a member of a small Muslim party that voted against Wahid on Thursday--recommended that Wahid step down. “It is better that the president resign,” Yusril said Friday.

With the vast majority of lawmakers against him, Wahid’s political survival hinges largely on the continuing support of his vice president, Megawati Sukarnoputri. She has yet to comment, but her party--the largest in Parliament--led the charge against him along with the Golkar Party of former dictator Suharto.