Golkar splinter group wants Aburizal out

New friction has emerged within the Golkar Party as a group of party members says Aburizal Bakrie should be temporarily suspended from his duties as Golkar chairman, so he can focus on settling issues with the tax office.

Last Friday, Tax Office chief Mochamad Tjiptardjo said his office was investigating possible tax
evasions worth Rp 2.1 trillion (US$222.6 million) by three coal miners affiliated with the Bakrie Group — PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC), PT Arutmin Indonesia, and their parent company, PT Bumi Resources — relating to their 2007 tax obligations.

The group, Clean Golkar Caucus (KGB), reportedly affiliated with former vice president and Golkar chairman Jusuf Kalla and media magnate Surya Paloh, Aburizal’s main rival in the recent Golkar chairmanship election, gained momentum in their attack on Aburizal, revealing a split within the party.

“The alleged tax violations involving the chairman have the potential to tarnish Golkar’s image,” KGB founder Zaenal Bintang told The Jakarta Post in Jakarta on Wednesday.

“We ask the chairman to temporarily step down, not because we hold any grudges against him, but because we care about the party’s image. We are very saddened to see a lot of Golkar members involved in corruption and criminal cases,” he said.

Zaenal’s fellow founder Ferry Mursyidan Baldan said branches of the KGB would be established as soon as possible in all of Golkar’s regional offices across Indonesia.

“We have a lot of colleagues who say they share similar views and will support the KGB,” Ferry said.
One of Aburizal’s close aides, Firman Soebagyo, however, played down the demand, saying it was just an insignificant voice of opinion raised by a small number of members.

“We all know Pak Zaenal. Zaenal would not be Zaenal if he did not make any news. However,

I want to stress that our party is solid behind Pak Aburizal. We do not feel there is any urgency at all
for him to step down from his post,” he said.

Political analyst Sukardi Rinakit said he was not surprised at the recent rift emerging within Golkar.

“This is a continuation of the friction that took place during the party’s chairmanship race between Aburizal’s bloc and that of Surya Paloh,” Sukardi said.

“The friction is now re-emerging following the recent dispute between Aburizal and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani. The losing bloc in Golkar is now trying to utilize this momentum to topple the chairman,” he said.

“However, I don’t think they will succeed. Aburizal, as a fact, has the upper hand with his power and [money],” he said.

Mulyani recently told The Wall Street Journal that Aburizal was not happy with her because of her past decisions that landed some heavy blows on his businesses.

Mulyani had also said she believed Aburizal would utilize his influence within the House of Representatives to discredit her as the finance minister for her role in bailing out Bank Century in November last year.

The bailout has been deemed by many to be tainted in controversy, since it have cost the state an estimated Rp 6.76 trillion.

Lawmakers at the House have said they suspected the investigation of Aburizal’s taxes might have something to do with Mulyani’s attempt to attack Aburizal.

An expert from the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), Burhanuddin Muhtadi, said he believed Mulyani had made the right decision to target Aburizal’s companies.

“She has many angles to attack Aburizal and Golkar. The party’s image has been severely tarnished in public, and the chairman himself is riddled with controversy. On the offensive side, she can attack Aburizal’s businesses, and on the defensive side, she can play victim.

That would gain her even more sympathy,” he said.