Nivell Rayda, Muninggar Sri Saraswati & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – The ruling Democratic Party says it will oppose any attempts by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights to select a permanent replacement for the outgoing chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission, saying any move to do so would open the door to abuse by political parties seeking to advance their own interests.

The stance comes amid rising tensions between the Democrats, the party of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and the House of Representatives. One senior observer warned on Tuesday that the standoff sparked by the Bank Century investigation signaled the dawn of "confrontation politics" in Indonesia.

Democrat Pieter Zulkifli, a member of the House of Representatives' Commission III, which oversees legal and political affairs, said the Democratic Party believed that selecting a replacement for Tumpak Hatorangan Panggabean, the interim chairman of the antigraft body, also known as the KPK, would be a "waste of time and money."

"Meanwhile, parties would race to promote the candidates of their choice in the hope that the new chairman would become a political tool once selected to the KPK," he said.

Pieter said the Democratic Party was studying whether the selection process was even legally necessary.

"Our main concern is the budget. If selected, the new KPK chairman would have a term of less than two years. Our party feels very strongly that the selection process [should] be done at the end of 2011, when the four existing commissioners end their term," he said.

Tumpak was appointed by Yudhoyono last year to temporarily replace Antasari Azhar, who was later sentenced to 18 years in prison after being convicted of murder.

The appointment was made possible after Yudhoyono enacted a regulation in lieu of law (perppu) that enabled the president to personally appoint a temporary replacement, should a commissioner be suspended.

By law, a KPK commissioner is automatically suspended once declared a criminal suspect or rendered unable to perform his or her duties for three consecutive months.

However, last week seven out of nine factions in the House rejected the perppu, meaning Tumpak's appointment has no legal standing. The president is now preparing a decree on Tumpak's honorable discharge.

Tumpak said on Tuesday that he would not challenge the House's decision, despite strong support from other institutions.

Earlier, presidential adviser Denny Indrayana and Constitutional Court chief Mahfud MD said separately that Tumpak could keep his position at the KPK because his appointment was made when the perppu was in effect.

"There are many interpretations of my position at the KPK. Some say I should be discharged, some say I can stay," he said. "I personally don't give this much thought. I will leave it to the government to decide. I am just here to do my job."

Minister of Justice and Human Rights Patrialis Akbar confirmed that there had been disagreement between factions in the House, which had discouraged his ministry from forming a preliminary selection team to screen suitable candidates.

"Basically, we need clarity before we can press forward with the selection process. If there are still disagreements at the House, we won't start," Patrialis said.

Political observer Alfan Alfian, from Jakarta's National University, said on Tuesday that the House's conclusion that there were indications of corruption involved in the Bank Century bailout had launched "confrontation politics" between the executive government and the House.

Alfan said the House will now likely oppose any policies not considered populist.

Political observer Bonni Hargens, of the University of Indonesia, agreed, saying Yudhoyono had been unable to ease the political tension.

"The ball is in the president's court now," Bonni said. "He must prove that he is president to everyone, not just to the Democrats. Otherwise, the political tension may escalate."

Yudhoyono has taken an increasingly hard line with those perceived to be enemies of reform, including Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie. Most of the political parties in the House are embroiled in corruption scandals.

Meanwhile, a regional survey released on Monday states Indonesia is perceived to be the most corrupt country in the Asia-Pacific region.