Jakarta – Indonesian vice president Megawati Sukarnoputri no longer supported President Abdurrahman Wahid and was ready to replace him, despite mistrusting her new allies, according to a senior official of her party.
"Mrs Mega and Gus Dur [Wahid's nickname] used to be like brother and sister. They were very close. But now it's different," the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "Mrs Mega is very, very disappointed in him. She can no longer support him."
However any bid for the presidency by Megawati would be strictly along constitutional lines, the official told AFP in an interview. He also said if she did take over, Megawati would "empower" the military.
The daughter of Indonesia's founding president Sukarno, Megawati, 54, has kept a studied silence on her ambitions during the past weeks of turmoil surrounding Wahid.
When she was denied the presidency 18 months ago, despite her party's general election victory after a coalition of Muslim parties objected to having a woman president, Megawati wept.
Her higher public profile now has led to the impression that she has made her decision, and opinion polls show her popularity has surged.
As vice president she will automatically replace Wahid if he resigns. But a similar constitutional guarantee does not obtain in case he is impeached.
She would have to rely on those same Muslim parties who previously crushed her presidential bid, including People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) chairman and Wahid's chief nemesis Amien Rais.
Wahid has defied demands for his resignation since parliament censured him on February 1 over two financial scandals.
He has seven weeks to respond or face a possible second censure, which, unless his response appeases MPs, could be followed by a special MPR session to impeach him.
Calls for his exit have intensified, especially from his foes in parliament, who say his ouster was vital to "save the nation."
Megawati's deep distrust of Rais – who is said to be nursing presidential ambitions of his own and is now leading moves to dump Wahid in her favour – would not deter her, the PDIP official said.
"She cannot 100 percent believe Amien Rais supports her. She knows this is politics," he said. "But it won't make her hesitate. She's thinking about how to save this nation," he said, adding "all parties" had an understanding to "keep Megawati safe until 2004." "She will accept it. She is ready," said the official.
Megawati's disillusionment with Wahid stems from his constant over-ruling of her decisions, he said. Wahid's pledge last August to delegate day-to-day running of the government to Megawati had proven empty, he noted.
"He is intervening in so many commitments made in cabinet meetings," the official said. "Whenever Mrs Mega tries to make decisions and use her new powers, he so often alters her decisions."
Megawati, he said, had concluded Wahid's blindness was affecting his decision-making. "Mrs Mega told me two days ago she tried closing her eyes and blindfolding herself in a room for an hour and a half, and put on classical music, to understand the president's position and emotions.
"Her conclusion was that his decisions just depend on the first thing that comes into his head." "He just listens to the people surrounding him, and the spirits."
Critics say Megawati was too close to the military (TNI) and, as president, would hand back more power to the armed forces. The PDIP official confirmed that "empowering" TNI was on Megawati's agenda.
"Mrs Mega believes if we are going to solve this nation's problems it must be with TNI," he said. "She wants to give them a political umbrella. We can call it the empowerment of TNI."
The military needed an "umbrella" because criticism of rights abuses had made them impotent, the official said, citing their ineffectiveness during recent ethnic slaughters in Borneo. "Mrs Mega thinks we should have a military that is strong."