From Thursday to Saturday this week, the National Mandate Party (PAN) will hold its third congress, this time on the island of Batam. The congress is expected to endorse Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa as the party’s next chairman.
Former legislator Drajat H. Wibowo is mounting a challenge, but most members believe he has no chance of beating Hatta.
Hatta is clearly the frontrunner. From all aspects, he is the most eligible to be named the next chairman. He has been with the party since it was established in 1998. He served as its secretary-general after its first congress, in Yogyakarta in 2000. He was the first chairman of the party at the House of Representatives, before serving as state research and technology minister under president Megawati Soekarnoputri. He then worked as transportation minister and then state secretary, before assuming his current position.
However, many questions remain unanswered in relation to the future of the PAN. Will the party grow bigger? More importantly, will it remain committed to reform as part of its agenda? What about pluralism? What about fighting corruption, collusion and nepotism?
Many members have expressed skepticism that the PAN can sustain its strong commitment to reform. The PAN’s performance in both the House and the government has not had any tangible results. The public cannot distinguish between PAN members and other politicians. They are seen as the same political animals interested only in power.
It will become a huge challenge, then, for the PAN leadership. Hatta, if elected, will meet difficult challenges in fighting the public skepticism. In the House, the PAN has 46 legislators, but what makes them any different from smaller parties?
The lack of participation by PAN legislators in public debates has become a serious internal problem.
Some are now questioning the qualities and abilities of those sitting in the House. Did the party really do its best to recruiting its MPs? What control does it exercise over its legislators? Were they really prepared to take up their jobs in the House?
So with very few members active in public debates, it is almost impossible to make the PAN attractive to the general public.
The PAN is a great political asset, but without an overhaul of the party’s organizational system, it will go down without a trace. The new leadership must be made aware of the challenges that lie ahead.
The writer is a former PAN legislator.
