JAKARTA: In response to a statement made by Golkar Party chairman and Vice President Jusuf Kalla, former Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung says there were no freeloaders at the party's 2003 convention.
"There's no reason to call someone a freeloader," Akbar said Saturday after attending the inauguration of the new Indonesian National Youth Committee (KNPI) board of executives.
"I don't understand what Jusuf Kalla means by saying 'freeloader'," he added.
Akbar said the convention was open to anyone wanting to progress with Golkar, and if elected, a person should support the party's struggle.
Kalla was entangled in a dispute with People's Conscience Party (Hanura) chairman Wiranto over the former's remark on freeloaders within the Golkar convention to select a presidential candidate five years ago.
Kalla made the remark at last month's Golkar congress, saying the party should not hold a national convention on fears that there would be freeloaders taking advantage of it.
Although Kalla said he did not refer to Wiranto, the latter was offended and filed for defamation through his legal team on Nov 5.
Kalla argued that he did not mention any names, and that he made the statement to remind Golkar members on how easily outsiders could crash the convention.
In August 2003, Golkar selected its presidential candidate for the 2004 election through a convention, in which Wiranto won after beating Akbar. Kalla withdrew from the convention earlier to team up with Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of the Democratic Party.
Wiranto chose Nahdlatul Ulama figure Solahuddin Wahid as his running mate, but the pair was eliminated in the first round of the election, bringing the election to a head-to-head battle between Yudhoyono and Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri.
The KNPI meeting Saturday inaugurated Ahmad Doli Kurnia as the organization's new chairman for the 2008-2011 period, replacing Hasanuddin Yusuf.
Akbar attended the meeting as the founder of the youth group.
The KNPI is encountering an internal rift between Hasanuddin's camp, which held a congress in Jakarta, and the opponent's camp led by Hans Havlino Silalahi, which held a congress in Denpasar.
While Hasanuddin's camp elected Ahmad as new chairman, Hans' camp elected Aziz Syamsuddin. -- JP
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