W

ith the General Elections Commission (KPU) confirming on Friday the results of the April 9 legislative election, and the deadline for the presidential/vice presidential nominations just a week away, the next seven days could prove to be the most pivotal in determining the make-up of Indonesia'€™s next leadership.

The public has been bombarded over the past month with a glut of gossip and speculation, to the point of political nausea.

The mating ritual of non-kindred political spirits seeking survival, or an alliance of hope.

One has been akin to the drive-by insemination ritual of the squid. Mates enticed by a transactional investment of bounty as part of the political copulation.

Then there'€™s the peacock strutting so proudly with his beautiful tail feathers erect and on display awaiting a partner.

What these analogies all mean really is that each of the two established contenders for the presidency has shortcomings, which a running-mate could readily complement or weaken further.

The leading candidate in the polls is still looking pretty. However, as we have learned over the past four weeks, attractiveness only gets one so far without proper organization and strategy.

Just because one looks pretty, it doesn'€™t mean one can get by simply by sitting pretty.

Apart from a solid organization, the selection of a running mate will be a make-or-break decision for the peacock. Thus it is in the interest of his main rival to see that the wrong running mate is chosen.

A suitable running mate is already on the cards for the solidarity maker. It is no match made in heaven, but certainly one that matches the needs of the country to put it economically back on its feet after the lost opportunities of the outgoing administration.

A running mate who could fulfill the criteria sought by the business sector, who has the turnkey skills to make the bureaucracy work and is already considered a senior statesman with the wherewithal to subdue conservative factions.

It was a handshake deal already brokered in the aftermath of the election. Yet stubbornness, over-confidence and infighting seem to have delayed, and now potentially derailed, a confirmation that should have been made over a week ago.

New names have suddenly come to the fore. One such name is that of a young activist whose work fighting corruption has been admired.

And while he may have the future credentials for executive leadership, his background lacks the potential to meet the strong desires of a business community seeking an action-oriented leadership with practical experience and which understands the demands of economic growth.

There are also questions as to whether this younger nominee actually brings anything concrete to attract a voting mass at the ballot box.

Just why or how his name has emerged is not really known. Partly it is due to ambition, but much also has to do with internal fears that the peacock'€™s mate will ultimately emerge as the more dominant half in the arrangement.

It is no surprise that the '€œsquid'€ would prefer the '€œpeacock'€ to find the weakest and least attractive mate possible.

Meanwhile, the squid continues to grope his way through mates who have limited voting appeal other than the material resources they can bring to the campaign. With a silver-haired fox as of the weekend now taking the inside track, an announcement is likely within 48 hours.

Yet still we must expect the unexpected. As the deadline draws nearer, the permutations become longer.

Then there is the lame duck. Soaring high for a decade, he now has no place among the peacock or the squid. But the duck is resourceful, used to flying in a flock.

Can the duck cobble together an alternative? He is certainly trying, perhaps involving Javanese royalty as his heir apparent.

The aim may not necessarily be one of conquering the jungle of Indonesian politics, but at least remaining a relevant force should the battle go into the later stages of a runoff. It looks like a desperate spoiler move, one that may ultimately be more damaging to one over the other.

Coming back to the world of living humans, there is much hope that the pairings will provide Indonesians with not only choices between the past and the future, the military and civilians, grudges and hope, but will offer a real prospect of practical competence in the job.

This final week of courtship will tell us much.