PAN to reaffirm internal unity on Tuesday

The National Mandate Party (PAN) will hold a national coordination meeting in Jakarta on Tuesday to reaffirm its support of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s bid in the upcoming presidential election.

"The meeting aims to solidify our stance in support of the candidacy of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his running mate, Boediono," the event committee head, Rizal Djalil, said, during a press conference at the House of Representatives in Senayan, South Jakarta, on Monday.

Rizal said PAN's chairman Soetrisno Bachir and the party's chief patron, Amien Rais, were scheduled to give speeches during the meeting.

"As many as 250 party members are scheduled to attend the meeting," he said.

PAN is one of the parties which experts have deemed to be inconsistent in determining its political stance.

In the aftermath of the April legislative election, Amien called for an allegiance with the Democratic Party. The call for support was later officially signed at the party's leadership meeting in Yogjakarta.

Soetrisno, however, refused to acknowledge the decision by leaving the meeting.

In giving its support, the party proposed one of its elite members, Hatta Rajasa, as Yudhoyono's running mate. Yudhoyono declined the offer by appointing Bank Indonesia governor Boediono. Disappointed by the move, Amien later threatened to leave the coalition.

The rift inside the party intensified as several of its elite members were seen attending different presidential election declarations.

Patrialis Akbar, the party's central board chairman, was seen at the Democratic Party’s official declaration of the candidacy of Yudhoyono-Boediono pair in Bandung.

Dradjad Wibowo, another elite member of the PAN, was seen at several political events held by Jusuf Kalla of the Golkar Party with his running mate Wiranto from the People’s Conscience Party.

The PAN flags were also seen during the official declaration of Megawati Sukarnoputri of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle as a presidential candidate at the Bantar Gebang landfill site in Bekasi on Sunday. (hdt)