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Scholar Says Indonesia's Wahid May Be Sacked Under Islamic Ruling
by Kazi Mahmood for IslamOnline
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - A popular scholar Wednesday punctuated a chorus clamoring the return of President Abdurrahman Wahid from a Mideast trip amid threats of a possible impeachment within four months, with a call for his sacking using Islamic justifications.
Din Syamsuddin's attack on the embattled leader, on a long absence from Indonesia while the country is in the throes of a mounting tragedy in Kalimantan, said that state and community leaders could be sacked under Islamic principles of governance.
Syamsuddin is thedeputy chairman of Muhammadiyah, the country's second largest Muslim organization after Gus Dur's (Wahid's nickname) Nahdlatul Ulama
He added this could apply to Wahid if it was deemed that he was no longer fit to rule. Syamsuddin said a leader could be impeached if he or she deviates from the principles of justice; loses any of the senses (sight, hearing, touch, sense and smell), is rendered unable to perform his/her duties due to strong control by surrounding forces, or commits sexual misconduct.
For Wahid's part, he has been accused of having a sexual affair with a married housewife and is suspected of having sacked a former Jakarta police chief for being nosey about the matter.
He is also severely impaired by physical inabilities, having lost his eyesight recently and being unable to walk by himself. He is sometimes hovered around in a wheelchair.
Syamsudding added, "Deviation from justice principles is an essential matter in leadership, because the main mission of a leader in Islam is to uphold justice."
He said the loss of any of the human senses could lead to impeachment because senses are the main medium for a leader to understand reality objectively and proportionally.
Syamsuddin stopped short of pointing out that Wahid is near blind. But he said a lack of any of the powers of sense could affect someone's personality, which in turn could influence the policies that person takes.
In a dissertation entitled "Between the Ruler and the Ruled: A Reflection of Islamic Thought and Islamic Politics," he said relations between the ruler and the ruled are part of a sociopolitical contract, which is in known in Islam as bay'ah.
He cited tenets raised by European theorists John Locke (died 1704) and Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1778) that relations between the ruler and the ruled are contractual depending on the public's acceptance of a ruler over any period of time.
"A social contract means the provision of a mandate by the people to the leader to govern based on the people's approval," said Syamsuddin.
He said the contract between the rulers and the ruled requires a mutual symbiosis if it is to remain intact. Therefore, relations between the two should follow the principle of equal partnership, he added.
"A leader should resign if he or she no longer has support. There is no need for mass mobilizations," he said, referring to recent anti-Wahid demonstrations organized by the president's opponents.
This recent criticism has prompted Amien Rais, the Chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), to claim that Wahid is finished and the historical task (of leading the nation) is now in the hands of Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri.
Galvanized by the popular dissent against the ailing president, Rais, the most verbal and aggressive politician calling for the removal of Wahid, said "Mega [referring to Megawati Sukarnoputri] is fully convinced that it is now her responsibility to lead because Wahid has been given more than a year and a half but has failed to lead the nation and people."
Rais said during a meeting with East Kalimantan Governor Suwarna AF in Bontang that Megawati has stated that she never supported Gus Dur.
Rais was referring to Megawati's statement to Syamsuddin during a meeting in Jakarta Wednesday.
"I've never been a supporter of Abdurrahman Wahid ... My present support is confined to my tasks as vice president," Syamsuddin cited Megawati as saying.
"This is a signal that Gus Dur no longer has moral legitimacy, has lost his historical right as president," Rais said as quoted by Antara.
Rais attributed Gus Dur's incapability to his physical handicap, his disability to listen to others and his introduction of new forms of corruption, collusion and nepotism, which are no less damaging than similar practices during the New Order era.
"Gus Dur also fails to guarantee the security of the children of the nation, from Sabang to Merauke," Rais said, adding that during Gus Dur's rule, the number of those who died in vain has multiplied when compared with the Habibie administration.
Amien also said that Gus Dur's failures in politics and economy are obvious because his four advisers from Japan, Singapore, the U.S. and Germany, had stated that Gus Dur's leadership style could not be maintained.
"One of the President's economic advisers even said that Gus Dur is a dangerous man," Rais said.
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