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Parties vow less squabbles as political climate turns

Ruling coalition parties on Sunday vowed to focus more on work in 2011, while pundits predicted that the political climate in the country would heat up this year with parties starting to gear up for the 2014 polls

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Mon, January 3, 2011

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Parties vow less squabbles as political climate turns

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uling coalition parties on Sunday vowed to focus more on work in 2011, while pundits predicted that the political climate in the country would heat up this year with parties starting to gear up for the 2014 polls.

In a speech Sunday night, National Mandate Party (PAN) chairman Hatta Radjasa said it was too early to focus on the 2014 elections. The coalition parties, he said, should avoid unnecessary bickering and begin spending their energy working on government programs.

His statement came on the heels of widespread media speculation that the ruling Democratic Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) had touted first lady Kristiani Herawati and Puan Maharani, the daughter of PDI-P chief patron Taufiq Kiemas, as running mates for the 2014 presidential elections.

Both parties denied having officially nominated candidates for the 2014 presidential election, but the rumors have left several coalition partners jittery and triggered debate over who would replace President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who according to the Constitution cannot run for a third term.

The situation, analysts said, would trigger competition among political parties. “Currently there is no strong candidate to replace Yudhoyono. Everyone believes they have a fair shot in 2014 and the competition may begin as early as this year,” Yunarto Wijaya, an analyst with Charta Politika, said.

Other issues that could create political tension this year include the deliberation of the revision to a series of political reform bills in which legislators will decide whether to raise the parliamentary threshold from the current 2.5 percent to between 3 and 5 percent. The plan to increase the threshold has been opposed by small parties who claim the move would favor major parties.

Analysts said it was possible that increased infighting among political parties this year could change the country’s political constellation by leading to a breakup of the coalition or a possible alliance between the Democratic Party and the PDI-P.

Coalition parties are already concerned over a possible Cabinet reshuffle this year as the President is set to announce an evaluation of the performance of the ministers this month.

“The coalition is held together only by transactional politics, trading favors. It will not last,” Hasyim Asy’ari, a political observer from the Partnership for Governance Reform (Kemitraan), said.

Recently, leaders of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), expressing resentment at how issues were tackled by the coalition’s joint secretariat, floated the idea of creating a “central axis” to rival the Golkar Party and the Democratic Party’s clout in the first signs of serious cracks in the coalition. The United Development Party (PPP) backed the calls by the PKS.

However, politicians are adamant the political situation this year would be less antagonistic than in 2010, when the coalition was split by issues ranging from the Bank Century scandal to the special status of Yogyakarta.

Democratic Party chairman Anas Urbaningrum hoped coalition partners would be more cooperative.

“Communication within the joint secretariat should be better and address substantial issues,” he said.

Hatta believed the coalition would become stronger if all members focused on building the country together. “We have to minimize differences because we have already agreed to be part of a coalition,” he said.

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