Sander Thoenes – The prospect of a sixth smooth re-election of President Suharto next year was put in doubt this week when a leading party failed to nominate him and a group of retired generals called for a new president.

The United Development party (PPP), one of only three parties represented in parIiament, failed to endorse any presidential candidate after three days of debate.

For the past two decades the Moslem PPP has played its part in a nationwide clamour to nominate Mr Suharto for every election. But newspapers said several branches of the party preferred to nominate Ismail Hasan Metarellm, the party chairman, or Amien Rais, an outspoken Moslem leader. Mr Ismail denied reports that his party's failure to endorse Mr Suharto was linked to persistent rumours about the president's health.

Mr Suharto, 76, has been resting for 12 days but said he would attend a military graduation today. His pledge helped bring back the rupiah and stock market from record lows yesterday.

On Tuesday, a well known group of retired generals and officials cited the economic crisis as grounds for urging the MPR, a hand-picked assembly that will meet in March, not to re-elect Mr Suharto and to abide by Indonesia's first constitution, which limits a president to two terms.

'If this is done, the road to political reform and democratisation on the basis of popular sovereignty can begin in a peaceful and constitutional way," said the group, which calls itself the Petition of Fifty.

Only students and fringe groups have so far dared call for the retirement of Mr Suharto. "Unlike just a few months ago, the continuance of this presidency is now in doubt," a western diplomat concluded.

Ali Sadikin, former governor of the Jakarta region and leader of the Petition of Fifty, denied harbouring ambitions for the presidency and said he favoured Amien Rais or Megawati Sukarno putri, daughter of the late President Sukarno.

The Petition of Fifty provoked Mr Suharto's anger in 1979 and 1980 with appeals for political reform and redefinition of the military's role in government. General Edi Sudradjat, minister of defence and security, said yesterday rumours of a coup were unfounded.