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Dems convention 'unaffected' by Effendi's departure
The ongoing Democratic Party (PD) presidential convention would remain on track despite the resignation of one of its main organizers, Effendi Ghazali, the secretary of the conventionâs committee, Lt
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he ongoing Democratic Party (PD) presidential convention would remain on track despite the resignation of one of its main organizers, Effendi Ghazali, the secretary of the convention's committee, Lt. Gen. (ret) Suaidi Marasabessy, said on Wednesday.
'The current ongoing progress of the convention has been largely handled by the survey institutes, instead of the committee. Committee members are now just monitoring the process and will eventually announce the result,' Suaidi said.
He brushed off speculation that Effendi had decided to resign due to unfair practices.
Effendi, a non-partisan political communications expert, announced on Monday he had resigned from the committee due to health reasons.
'I underwent tendon surgery on Feb. 5 after being tackled during a football game. Recovery usually takes three to six months during which I am not allowed to have too many activities. That is why I tendered my resignation letter to the committee,' Effendi said.
He also confirmed that he had found no 'intention or attempt' to engage in unfair practices during his tenure on the committee since August last year.
'There could also be a connection between my resignation and my disappointment over the fair access to television as mandated by the Broadcasting Law. Amid the rampant violations regarding political content by TV stations, there has been no significant action by the Communications and Information Minister [Tifatul Sembiring] and his superior President [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono],' Effendi added.
Previously, Effendi was involved in a row with fellow committee members in connection to the outrage expressed by University of Indonesia political psychologist Hamdi Muluk who called the committee 'unprofessional.'
Effendi initially proposed Hamdi, also a non partisan, to be a member of the convention's survey audit team. But he later expressed disappointment after learning how the committee had treated Hamdi.
As many as 17 public figures have participated in the convention. The decision on the party's eventual presidential candidate will be in the hands of three 'independent' survey institutes hired by the PD and is due to be announced soon after the April 9 legislative election.
Analysts have suggested that the convention was merely the PD's strategy to boost the party's nose-diving poll numbers, as many surveys have predicted it will be almost impossible for the ruling party to get 20 percent of the popular vote, the threshold required for a party to be eligible to nominate a presidential candidate.
