Suharto re-elected
In February 1998 Gen Wiranto became the new head of the armed forces and Suharto's 46-year-old son-in-law became commander of the Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad). President Suharto was elected to his seventh five-year term in early March 1998; he was the only candidate. He remained opposed to the economic reforms demanded by his critics and supported by the IMF. IMF officials were seeking to salvage the economic bail-out programme, a move particularly important in the context of food shortages and rising prices throughout the country. It was feared that Suharto's failure to agree with the IMF's terms might pose a grave risk to Indonesia's economic and political stability. The specially vetted People's Consultative Assembly