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Oligarchs strengthen grip on major parties

The nomination of Megawati Soekarnoputri to be chairperson of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) for 2015-2020 and the takeover of the Gerindra Party by its chief patron, Prabowo Subianto, provide a clear indication that oligarchs remain in control of the country’s political arena, despite the recent victory of president-elect Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, whom many see as an outsider

Haeril Halim and Margareth S. Aritonang (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta/Semarang
Mon, September 22, 2014

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Oligarchs  strengthen grip on major parties

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he nomination of Megawati Soekarnoputri to be chairperson of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) for 2015-2020 and the takeover of the Gerindra Party by its chief patron, Prabowo Subianto, provide a clear indication that oligarchs remain in control of the country'€™s political arena, despite the recent victory of president-elect Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo, whom many see as an outsider.

Over the weekend, Megawati and Prabowo followed in the footsteps of outgoing President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono as Democratic Party chairman by taking control of their political parties and effectively making the running of a political party a family affair.

Wawan Ichwanuddin of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) said reappointing Megawati as party chairperson may be the only way for the PDI-P to defend itself from the fierce opposition by Gerindra in the future, as she was the only figure who could unite the party'€™s members in a time of crisis, but it also indicated a failure in terms of regeneration.

He said that too much dependence on Megawati could kill the democratic process within the PDI-P.

'€œThe PDI-P certainly needs a figure who can unite people internally to face a strong opposition squaring off against Jokowi'€™s administration in the future. But, there are a lot of politicians who are qualified to be the party'€™s chairman. Why aren'€™t they being given the chance to lead the party?'€ Wawan said.

He said the fact that figures like Megawati, Prabowo and Yudhoyono would continue to dominate the country'€™s political landscape after this year'€™s elections could also hamper the political process in the future.

'€œFor example, if Jokowi wants to run for another term in the 2019 presidential election, then Megawati'€™s blessing is a must,'€ he said.

Separately, political analyst Arya Budi from the Pol-Tracking Institute said that oligarchs like Megawati, Prabowo and Yudhoyono could serve as unifying figures but they could also '€” in the long run '€” jeopardize their parties'€™ futures.

  • Nomination of Megawati and Prabowo as their respective party leader shows that oligarchs remain strong
  • The phenomenon shows lack of leadership in political parties

'€œWhat we are seeing now is an absence of leadership renewal within the PDI-P and Gerindra. This is a potential time bomb. Can you imagine if something happens to these oligarchs? We could end up seeing the letting of blood within the parties,'€ Arya said on Sunday.

The PDI-P'€™s national meeting in Semarang, Central Java, unanimously agreed on Saturday to endorse Megawati'€™s nomination for chairwoman through 2020, making her the only candidate who will run for the post in the upcoming party congress next year. Megawati'€™s tenure at PDI-P is slated to end in 2015.

PDI-P secretary-general Tjahjo Kumolo rejected claims that Megawati'€™s reappointment as party leader would preempt renewal within
the party.

'€œYou can see that the regeneration process is working well by looking at our members at regional and provincial levels,'€ he said.

Tjahjo said the leadership of the PDI-P had to be assumed by someone with blood ties to the country'€™s first president, Sukarno, Megawati'€™s father. He said only members of Sukarno'€™s family could unite the party. '€œAs long as this party exists, the leadership must be held by somebody that has ties with Bung Karno.'€

On Saturday, Gerindra'€™s regional representatives attending the party'€™s extraordinary congress in West Java, appointed Prabowo, who also serves as the party'€™s chief patron, as Gerindra'€™s chairman to replace former chairman Suhardi, who died of lung cancer in August.

Gerindra secretary-general Ahmad Muzani said Prabowo'€™s appointment as party chairman was intended to maintain unity within the party, adding that Prabowo would hold the position only temporarily.

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