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Gerindra rebuffs claims it is a socialist party
Although some observers fear he could become âthe next Hugo Chavez from Indonesiaâ, Prabowo Subianto, the chief patron of the Gerindra Party and one of the countryâs strongest presidential contenders, says that he and his party are friendlier to foreign investors than many think
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lthough some observers fear he could become 'the next Hugo Chavez from Indonesia', Prabowo Subianto, the chief patron of the Gerindra Party and one of the country's strongest presidential contenders, says that he and his party are friendlier to foreign investors than many think.
The son of noted professor and liberal economist Sumitro Djojohadikusumo ' a mentor of former president Soeharto's economic team, dubbed the 'Berkeley Mafia', known for their Western views and liberalization-biased policies ' Prabowo hinted that his position on economics more likely mirrored his father's, rather than the late Venezuelan-leftist leader.
'One of the inaccurate charges leveled against me, which I would like to correct, is the notion that I am somehow against foreign investment and, if elected, would nationalize industries currently controlled by multinational interests,' Prabowo wrote in The Jakarta Post recently.
Offshore-based investments to spur the economy should be welcomed, but the nation must seek fair treatment instead of being held hostage when facing difficult negotiations with multinational firms, according to him.
Foreign investors came here to reap profits only. Such interests, Prabowo explained, differed greatly to those of the government, which considered welfare indicators such as wage levels, environmental protection, community relations, resource pricing, before striking deals with foreign investors.
Prabowo, who is blacklisted by the US and banned from entering the country due to alleged human rights violations from his military past, claimed he had the required capacity to negotiate on the international stage, and could strike the right balance between the interests of foreign investors and the Indonesian people.
'If elected, I promise to work closely with all foreign investors,' he stated. 'We will hammer out fair prices and fair terms for what they produce in our nation, with the expectation that our terms will continue to be attractive enough to warrant their investment.'
Prabowo earned the reputation of being a leftist leader after he aggressively campaigned for the so-called 'People's Economy' program in the 2009 election, when he ran as Megawati Soekarnoputri's vice presidential running mate for the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
At that time, the Megawati-Prabowo ticket vowed to boost protection of local businesses, notably low-income farmers and fishermen, with some of their economic programs described by some economists as 'socialist' and anti-foreign investment.
With such economic programs, the economy could grow by at least 10 percent annually, Prabowo claimed at the time.
A former commander-in-chief of Indonesia's special forces, Prabowo emerged as a strong contender in this year's presidential election, as he and his gallant image has been seen as a fresh replacement for people dissatisfied with the indecisive leadership of incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
According to the latest survey by Kompas daily, Prabowo is predicted to collect 11.1 percent of the vote in this year's presidential election, second only to Jakarta Governor Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo.
Gerindra has absorbed his popularity and has now become the country's third-largest party, as the survey indicated it would collect 11.5 percent of the vote in this year's legislative election, with only the PDI-P and the Golkar Party
ahead of it.
Supported by Prabowo and his younger brother Hashim Djohohadikusumo, one of the country's richest men, Gerindra is currently the party with the strongest financial resources.
As of March, Gerindra had at least Rp 306 billion (US$27 million) campaign funds, the biggest among the financial reports of the 12 parties that will contest this year's election, according to data from the General Elections Commission (KPU).
Nevertheless, despite Prabowo's claims that he personally is not against foreign investment, an economic vision released by Gerindra shows that his party is indeed more inclined toward social economic policies.
Gerindra 'rejected the policy of privatization of state-owned enterprises', the party stated in its economic platform, titled 'The Manifesto of the Gerindra Party'.
Gerindra also noted that the government must retain the status of controlling shareholder of any state-owned firms, while it suggested foreign investors should only be passive shareholders.
Gerindra also voiced strong opposition to free trade, with the party stating that it 'rejected any form of liberalization of trade, instead opting to push for protectionism for local commodities'. It also expressed contempt for the excessive influence of foreign investors in the economy.
'The current situation has created foreign dominance in the ownership of [Indonesia's] economic sectors, putting the people's welfare on the sidelines.' Gerindra's manifesto stated. 'The economic system of liberal-capitalism needs to be corrected because it has failed to bring prosperity to the people.'
