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Vowing to stick by his boss, Vice President Boediono on Friday dismissed calls to step down over the Bank Century bailout, saying those trying to push him from office would be disappointed.

In his first public comments on the issue since the probe of the bailout began, Boediono compared rescuing the bank from collapse at the height of the global financial crisis to saving a “burning house in the middle of a fire-prone village.”

“I hear some groups are asking me to step down,” he said in a rare televised speech from his office. “If I met that demand, I would be recorded in history as the leader who ran from his responsibilities, as the leader who spurned the mandate of the people who had voted [for him].”

He said he would stay because he would “never betray the president’s trust and desert him.”

During his speech, Boediono aimed at his critics at the House of Representatives, which had launched the investigation of the Rp 6.7 trillion ($723 million) bailout. Lawmakers from several political parties, including the Golkar Party, a member of the ruling coalition, alleged that Boediono and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati were responsible for what they said was an illegal bailout.

Some publicly demanded the two resign from their posts.

In the end, the House concluded that there were “indications” of crimes and irregularities, but did not specifically name anyone as responsible. Boediono, however, was listed in an addendum to Wednesday’s final report, which is not legally binding.

In a typically calm and measured tone, Boediono said the only way he would end his term in office prematurely would be if the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) impeached him.

“If the majority of the people’s representatives in the People’s Consultative Assembly demand it, and if the requirements under the Constitution and other regulations are met, whatever the MPR’s final decision, I will obey,” he said.

Since the probe ended on Wednesday, no parties have moved to initiate a formal impeachment motion against the vice president. Several parties who were particularly critical of the bailout, including Golkar and the United Development Party (PPP), have said they have no plans to do so.

Political commentators said they doubted such a move would succeed in any case, unless the ruling Democratic Party backed it, which would be highly unlikely.

“The current factions that support impeachment are not sufficient to propose a no-confidence vote,” said Ari Dwipayana, a political analyst at Yogyakarta’s Gadjah Mada University.

Burhanuddin Muhtadi, an analyst from the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), said: “It is not going to happen without the Democratic Party. If the Democratic Party boycotts [the plenary session], the game is over for Boediono’s impeachment.”

In just his third public statement on Bank Century since Dec. 12, just prior to the beginning of the House inquiry, Boediono, who was central bank governor at the time of the bailout, reiterated that the action was necessary to protect the banking system during the global financial crisis.

“As governor of Bank Indonesia at that time, I realized that the institution had various weaknesses,” he said. “But the weaknesses were not enough to hamper what needed to be done quickly. Difficult actions have to be taken for a greater good.”

Addressing the political context of the case, Boediono said political parties should avoid the “short-term passion for power,” which
could bring about the demise of democracy.