Indonesia's vice president has yet to make up her mind whether to accept an offer from embattled President Abdurrahman Wahid to take on more power, a senior aide said today.
Mr Wahid yesterday had proposed making the hugely popular Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri effective head of government just days before parliament is expected to call on the top legislative assembly to impeach him over his stumbling 19-month rule.
The vice-president said that she had yet to make a decision, Mr Bambang Kesowo told reporters.
He said more time was needed to study the implications, especially the legal ones. Under the constitution, power resides almost entirely in the hands of the president and some have argued that Mr Wahid's proposal would require it to be rewritten.
Late on Friday, another key aide had said she would reject the offer but Ms Megawati has remained silent on the issue in public.
In a separate development Mr Wahid warned today that the country could split apart if parliamentarians press ahead with attempts to get him impeached.
He also quoted the powerful speaker of parliament, Mr Akbar Tandjung, as telling one of his senior officials that he did not want a special session of the top assembly, which has the power to oust the president.
Mr Wahid told a news conference that people in the rebellious province of Aceh and his own political heartland of East Java had both asked him to become president, suggesting they would break away from Indonesia if the special session goes ahead.
"One must take this (threat) seriously", he said in brief comments to reporters at the palace. He left without answering questions.
"(If it goes ahead) the governor...will appear on television, saying East Java rejects the special session", he said.