Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Controversial police figure Commissioner General Da'i Bachtiar is set to become Indonesia's new police chief with the backing of President Megawati Sukarnoputri and the majority of Parliament, despite criticism over his past track record.

Following a hearing during which the general, currently chief of the National Coordinating Body for Narcotics, presented his "vision and mission" to the parliamentarian commission, it was announced that all factions of the government had given their stamp of approval to the sole candidate. He will be officiated in a plenary session of Parliament on Thursday.

Ms Megawati's Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle, Golkar and the United Development Party are the three largest political parties that have supported him.

At the hearing, the general vowed to unify the splintered police force and to cleanse the corps of cut-throat rivalry among top-ranking officers.

Indeed, it is his "neutral" quality that had led the President to favour him over other candidates with more accomplishments, such as Jakarta Police chief Inspector-General Sofyan Yakob and East Java police chief Inspector-General Sutanto.

In the tense weeks preceding President Abdurrahman Wahid's removal last August, the general did not take sides even as tensions ran high within the police leadership. Many top officers had then defied the President's dismissal of their chief General Suroyo Bimantoro while some officers supported his presidency.

However, a source told The Straits Times that there were reservations within the police force over Gen Da'i's appointment. The country's fourth largest party, Mr Abdurrahman's Nation's Awakening Party, also opposed his nomination, questioning his records in the human rights department.

Gen Da'i was sacked as East Java police chief early this year after five of Mr Abdurrahman's supporters died in a clash with police troops. Human-rights groups have also alleged that he tried in 1998 to cover up the kidnap of student activists by members of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus), despite later testimonies by the victims.

Dozens of protesters grouped under the Commission for Missing People and Victims of Violence and the Victims of 1998 kidnappings yesterday rallied in the Parliament Building, calling on the legislators to reject Gen Da'i's nomination.

Mr Andi Arif, one of the kidnapped activists who participated in the rally, said: "We think that Megawati's government is accommodating those who perpetrated rights abuse in the past."

Other chiefs who caused a stir:

• Gen Dibyo Widodo: His biggest "sin" has been denying the role of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus) members in the kidnapping of activists in 1998 despite testimonies by the victims. Testimonies by other police officers revealed that he had full knowledge of the kidnapping when he ordered the Jakarta Police to accept three of the activists dropped off by the kidnappers.
• Lt-Gen Rusdiharjo: Appointed by President Abdurrahman Wahid in January 2000 but sacked eight months later. His hasty replacement by Gen Suroyo Bimantoro triggered tension with Parliament, as the law required the president to consult Parliament before appointing or firing a police chief.
• Gen Suroyo Bimantoro: History repeated itself again, when Mr Abdurrahman sacked Gen Bimantoro without first consulting Parliament. He was suspended in June after he refused to resign. But he showed up at work as he had the support of officers.