TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Horse trading begins as parties seek alliances
Senior officials of several political parties have begun scrambling to forge coalitions in order to meet the minimum-vote requirement to nominate a presidential candidate, after Wednesdayâs legislative election failed to produce an outright winner
Change Size
S
enior officials of several political parties have begun scrambling to forge coalitions in order to meet the minimum-vote requirement to nominate a presidential candidate, after Wednesday's legislative election failed to produce an outright winner.
A delegation from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), led by the party's secretary-general Tjahjo Kumolo, visited the headquarters of the NasDem Party in Central Jakarta on Thursday for talks on a potential coalition.
The PDI-P, which according to quick counts garnered around 19 percent of the vote, will need at least 6 percent of the vote from other parties in order to be able to nominate Jakarta Governor Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo as a presidential candidate.
To be able to nominate a presidential ticket, a political party or coalition of parties must get 25 percent of the popular vote or 20 percent of the seats in the House of Representatives.
Among the potential parties eyed by the PDI-P is NasDem, which as indicated by quick-count results received around 6.5 percent of the vote. 'It's just a normal meeting among senior party officials,' said NasDem's chairman for elections Ferry Mursyidan Baldan.
Officials from both parties remained tight-lipped when asked about the upshot of the meeting.
Aside from the party's vote, a coalition with NasDem would also provide the PDI-P with access to the media as NasDem is the political vehicle of media tycoon Surya Paloh, who controls the Metro TV news station and the Media Indonesia newspaper.
The PDI-P may also receive a boost from the National Awakening Party (PKB), which in a surprise result is indicated to have received 9 percent of the vote, double its vote in the 2009 election.
PKB chairman Muhaimin Iskandar said that the decision whether to form an alliance with the PDI-P would be announced within a week.
'There are many possibilities of forming an alliance with many parties, including with the PDI-P. We will know the outcome within a week,' he said.
Support from the PKB would help the PDI-P secure the votes of members of Nahdlatul Ulama, the country's biggest Muslim organization, which is mostly concentrated in areas in East Java.
But a coalition with the PKB might not come cheap as the party would likely provide its support in exchange for the vice president's position. 'We're more interested in forming an alliance with a party that is willing to give us the vice presidential spot on the ticket,' said Muhaimin.
Despite the request, the PDI-P remains resolute about any request for a 'transactional' coalition.
PDI-P deputy secretary-general Ahmad Basarah reiterated that the PDI-P would not succumb to political wheeler-dealing. 'Getting into a coalition is not merely about power distribution,' he said, adding that forming a stable coalition would require fewer members but with a large percentage of the vote.
Jokowi was quick to distance the party from any deals on Wednesday, saying that he welcomed any parties that wanted to form a coalition, but they should know the PDI-P would not hand out ministerial posts in return for support.
'We're not going to repeat this administration's mistake and be forced to give away ministerial posts and other concessions in exchange for support,' said Jokowi.
However, Jokowi may not be in a position to bargain or negotiate as PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri has appointed her daughter Puan Maharani and Tjahjo to spearhead coalition talks with other parties.
Separately, the Golkar Party, which came in second after the PDI-P with around 14 percent of the vote, is still upbeat about forming the requisite coalition to support the presidential candidacy of its chairman Aburizal Bakrie.
Deputy chairman Sharif Cicip Sutardjo said Golkar would actively seek support from other parties to meet the required presidential threshold. Political analyst Muhammad Qodari of Indo Barometer predicted a three-horse race in the upcoming presidential election.
The first candidate, Jokowi, might be supported by a coalition consisting of NasDem, the PKB and the National Mandate Party (PAN), according to Qodari.
The second contender could be Prabowo Subianto, the chief patron of the Gerindra Party. Its coalition members might include President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party, and the United Development Party (PPP).
The third frontrunner was likely to be Aburizal. His alliance could include the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the Hanura Party and also possibly the Democratic Party, according to Qodari.
