Articles » 05 Mei 2009 » Hit: 346
SBY’s new other half: The PKS option
By: Zulkieflimansyah
While the election results have not yet been finalized, it appears that the Democrat Party (PD) will take the biggest portion of seats in parliament. The quick count results of various survey institutes indicate PD will walk away with around 20.6 percent of the vote.
Coming in second would be the Golkar Party with 14.8 percent, follwed by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Strunggle (PDI-P) with 14.3 percent of the total votes cast. Smaller parties include the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) with 8.1 percent, the National Mandate Party (PAN) with 6.3 percent, the United Development Party (PPP) with 5.5 percent, the National Awakening Party (PKB) with 5.2 percent, the Great Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra) with 4.6 percent and the People’s Conscience Party (Hanura) with 3.6 percent.
These are the nine main politicial parties in the national legislature, and these will constitute the key players in the formation of the new government. These are the nine parties which have met the 2.5 percent parliamentary threshold.
It is clear PD will nominate Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) as its presidential candidate in the July direc presidential election. However, the situation has been complicated since Golkar announced it was no longer interested in partnering with PD and that the Golkar Party chairman, Vice President Jusuf Kalla, would contest the July presidential election.
Golkar’s announcement turned what looked to be a fairly straight forward presidential election into an open question, and very possibly a three-cornered contest between key coalition of parties.
It seems quite likely PD will approach smaller parties. One likely scenario would be for PD to align with PKS and PKB, while Golkar teams up with Hanura, and PDI-P aligns with Gerindra. This scenario would see a Jusuf Kalla- Wiranto partnership led by Golkar, and a Megawati- Prabowo partnership led by PDI-P.
The question now is who president SBY will pair up with for the direct presidential election? Choosing the right vice-presidential running-mate is an important decision, particularly for the Democrat Party. It must form a strong coalition with smaller parties so its presidential ticket remains attractive.
For PD, the choice of Hidayat Nur Wahid of PKS is obvious. Among the range of smaller parties, PKS accouts for aroud 8.1 percent of the popular vote, making in the fourth largest political party in the national parliament.
The most recent survey conducted by LP3ES indicated that Hidayat Nur Wahid (HNW) is the most popular vice presidential candidate to be paired with SBY. If an SBY-Hidayat partnership is formed, there is no doubt that PKS’s political machine will work hard at grassroots levels to promote the pair.
However, to form a coalition with PKS and to nominate Hidayat Nur Wahid as running mate is not an easy decision, given the overarching image of PKS being an Islamist political party: a party that would seek to introduce Islamic law in Indonesia; a party against pluralism and openness; anti-women; and that would seek to turn Indone sian into an archaic Islamic state – Indeed, black campaign arguments against PKS are likely to be many.
Forming a coalition with PKS and choosing Hidayat Nur Wahid as a running mate is also important for the intenal development an maturity of PKS. There is no denying that there are radical elements within the party.
The transformation of the movement into a fully-fledged political party has not always been easy.
Indeed, some party members cling to hopes that Indonesia will one day become an Islamic state. These radical elements still see the movement as the centre of the world aroud which Indonesia is expected to conform. But they are also becoming a small minority.
Most PKS members and supporters have had to learn that Indonesia’s reality is a pluralist. The have had to adapt to the transformation of a dakwah movement into a political pary that must be attuned to the mainstream agenda.
This process of change and growth is ongoing within PKS. It is a known fact that PKS is split between hardliners and those who advocate change and innovation. But evidence points to the fact that the majority are convinced that change and innovation and its transformation into a full-fledged politicial party are now inevitable.
PD must choose a candidate who is embraced by the local population, but who is also acceptable to the international community. At the same time, coalition partners and the vice-presidential partner must ensure that the PD-led government is stable, strong and efficient.
Any resistance to choosing a candidate from PKS as a vice-presidential partner may indeed be insurmountable at this stage. One possible alternative is for PD to opt for a neutral figure to partner SBY. Perhaps they could be a professional or a long-standing bureaucrat.
This option would be far better than opting for a vice-presidential partner from another, smaller political party. To do so would be undermining the coalition partnership with PKS, particularly at grassroots levels. It would be difficult for PKS members to see their nominee rejected in favor of a candidate from a smaller political party within the coalition. (The Jakarta Post, May 5, 2009)
While the election results have not yet been finalized, it appears that the Democrat Party (PD) will take the biggest portion of seats in parliament. The quick count results of various survey institutes indicate PD will walk away with around 20.6 percent of the vote.
Coming in second would be the Golkar Party with 14.8 percent, follwed by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Strunggle (PDI-P) with 14.3 percent of the total votes cast. Smaller parties include the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) with 8.1 percent, the National Mandate Party (PAN) with 6.3 percent, the United Development Party (PPP) with 5.5 percent, the National Awakening Party (PKB) with 5.2 percent, the Great Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra) with 4.6 percent and the People’s Conscience Party (Hanura) with 3.6 percent.
These are the nine main politicial parties in the national legislature, and these will constitute the key players in the formation of the new government. These are the nine parties which have met the 2.5 percent parliamentary threshold.
It is clear PD will nominate Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) as its presidential candidate in the July direc presidential election. However, the situation has been complicated since Golkar announced it was no longer interested in partnering with PD and that the Golkar Party chairman, Vice President Jusuf Kalla, would contest the July presidential election.
Golkar’s announcement turned what looked to be a fairly straight forward presidential election into an open question, and very possibly a three-cornered contest between key coalition of parties.
It seems quite likely PD will approach smaller parties. One likely scenario would be for PD to align with PKS and PKB, while Golkar teams up with Hanura, and PDI-P aligns with Gerindra. This scenario would see a Jusuf Kalla- Wiranto partnership led by Golkar, and a Megawati- Prabowo partnership led by PDI-P.
The question now is who president SBY will pair up with for the direct presidential election? Choosing the right vice-presidential running-mate is an important decision, particularly for the Democrat Party. It must form a strong coalition with smaller parties so its presidential ticket remains attractive.
For PD, the choice of Hidayat Nur Wahid of PKS is obvious. Among the range of smaller parties, PKS accouts for aroud 8.1 percent of the popular vote, making in the fourth largest political party in the national parliament.
The most recent survey conducted by LP3ES indicated that Hidayat Nur Wahid (HNW) is the most popular vice presidential candidate to be paired with SBY. If an SBY-Hidayat partnership is formed, there is no doubt that PKS’s political machine will work hard at grassroots levels to promote the pair.
However, to form a coalition with PKS and to nominate Hidayat Nur Wahid as running mate is not an easy decision, given the overarching image of PKS being an Islamist political party: a party that would seek to introduce Islamic law in Indonesia; a party against pluralism and openness; anti-women; and that would seek to turn Indone sian into an archaic Islamic state – Indeed, black campaign arguments against PKS are likely to be many.
Forming a coalition with PKS and choosing Hidayat Nur Wahid as a running mate is also important for the intenal development an maturity of PKS. There is no denying that there are radical elements within the party.
The transformation of the movement into a fully-fledged political party has not always been easy.
Indeed, some party members cling to hopes that Indonesia will one day become an Islamic state. These radical elements still see the movement as the centre of the world aroud which Indonesia is expected to conform. But they are also becoming a small minority.
Most PKS members and supporters have had to learn that Indonesia’s reality is a pluralist. The have had to adapt to the transformation of a dakwah movement into a political pary that must be attuned to the mainstream agenda.
This process of change and growth is ongoing within PKS. It is a known fact that PKS is split between hardliners and those who advocate change and innovation. But evidence points to the fact that the majority are convinced that change and innovation and its transformation into a full-fledged politicial party are now inevitable.
PD must choose a candidate who is embraced by the local population, but who is also acceptable to the international community. At the same time, coalition partners and the vice-presidential partner must ensure that the PD-led government is stable, strong and efficient.
Any resistance to choosing a candidate from PKS as a vice-presidential partner may indeed be insurmountable at this stage. One possible alternative is for PD to opt for a neutral figure to partner SBY. Perhaps they could be a professional or a long-standing bureaucrat.
This option would be far better than opting for a vice-presidential partner from another, smaller political party. To do so would be undermining the coalition partnership with PKS, particularly at grassroots levels. It would be difficult for PKS members to see their nominee rejected in favor of a candidate from a smaller political party within the coalition. (The Jakarta Post, May 5, 2009)