Indonesians expressed their deepest condolences for the passing of Taufiq Kiemas, People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker and senior Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician, on Saturday.

 The state's recognition of his services was given in his state funeral at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in South Jakarta on Sunday.

 Taufiq was known as a high caliber-politician. He proposed numerous ideas not simply for his party, but also for Indonesian politicians more widely. This country is in his debt for at least three of his ideas.

First, Taufiq was keen on preserving the four pillars of Indonesian nationhood, particularly for younger generations.

The state and the academic community accepted his ideas on the four pillars: Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution, the Bhineka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity) national motto and the concept of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.

On many occasions, Taufiq said he expected youth to carry on the state's bid to develop the country based on the four pillars.

His strong commitment to the four pillars attracted public esteem and earned him an honorary degree from Trisakti University.

The award was not only his academic achievement, but also the achievement of all MPR members. The MPR's ongoing promotion of the four pillars, therefore, has firm foundation.

Under his leadership, each year the MPR supported events that renewed pledges of commitment to interfaith harmony.

To him, professing acceptance of Pancasila and pluralism had to be implemented in practice, not just with rhetoric.

Second, Taufiq was noncompromising concerning freedom of expression. He was of the opinion that expressing dissent was not taboo. Celebrating his 70th birthday, Taufiq openly criticized his wife, Megawati Soekarnoputri, former president and chair of the PDI-P, for being surrounded by sycophants.

He considered his criticism important for the party's survival.

Taufiq was known for not being a 'yes man' just to please his wife and the party. He was not ashamed of declaring that his wife's popularity and electability rates were less impressive than those of Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party chairman Prabowo Subianto, Golkar Party chairman Aburizal Bakrie and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

It was no secret that Taufiq and Megawati often disagreed when they discussed politics. While Taufiq was said to be expressive and egalitarian, Megawati is regarded an introvert.

Their marriage never stopped Taufiq from criticizing his wife and party. His outspoken nature was strongly rooted in his endless fight to safeguard pluralism. He never treated people according to their religion, ethnicity, family
or group.

Third, Taufiq always advocated the rejuvenation in leadership of political parties. As a senior politician, he often stood out from other politicians of his age as he often talked about regeneration.

He once said the Presidency should be reserved for individuals from younger generations. That is why he was always locking horns with Megawati, telling the former president to drop her presidential ambitions and let someone younger run in 2014.

Since 2010, Taufiq said young blood would dominate the party structure for the next five years as part of its regeneration program and a plan to rebuild its image.

He believed it would be a disaster if the PDI-P was associated with the older generation.

Taufiq was acutely aware that regeneration was the biggest challenge facing the party in gaining the support of younger voters, since the public would see no improvement in the party if it was continually led by the same figure.

With his preference for political regeneration, Taufiq set the scene for young politicians to rise to secure spots on party tickets. His pioneering style sought to remove the shadows of older politicians who frequently resisted the political regeneration of their parties.
 

The writer is a lecturer in the faculty of cultural sciences at Andalas University, Padang.

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