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arties in the opposition Red-and-White Coalition, supported by the Aburizal Bakrie faction of the Golkar Party, have agreed to launch an inquiry into Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly for his alleged intervention that led Aburizal to lose his chairmanship of the party.

The opposition coalition aims to submit the inquiry motion to the House of Representatives leadership by Thursday, a move many in the ruling Great Indonesia Coalition perceive as '€œweak'€.

Lawmaker Bambang Soesatyo, a supporter of Aburizal, who lost the Golkar chairmanship to Agung Laksono, announced on Tuesday that 50 of the party'€™s 91 lawmakers had signed the proposal.

Other political factions in the opposition camp have agreed to direct all their lawmakers to follow suit in a show of solidarity.

'€œWe'€™re determined to endorse the inquiry because we'€™ve been informed that Yasonna made the decision [to issue a decree to recognize Agung'€™s leadership] without the President'€™s consent. Thus, we demand an investigation into the move of the [law and human rights] minister, who is a politician from a political party,'€ Bambang told a press briefing on Tuesday.

Bambang alleged that the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), of which Yasonna is a member, was behind the decision to favor the pro-government camp of Agung. He also alleged that the move was motivated to lure Golkar, which had the largest number House seats among members of the opposition coalition, into the ruling coalition.

Bambang, a member of House Commission III overseeing legal affairs, said Yasonna had abused his position as minister.

'€œWe will fight back. He [Yasonna] has acted as a political party operator instead of a minister,'€ Bambang said.

Bambang'€™s colleagues from the Gerindra Party, the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) backed the announcement.

'€œWe fully support the proposal as we too have suffered from his [Yasonna] abuses of authority,'€ said United Development Party (PPP) politician Epyardi Asda.

Epyardi is a member of a political faction within the PPP that supported the leadership of Djan Faridz.

Last year, Yasonna recognized the leadership of Muhammad Romahurmuziy of the PPP at the expense of Djan, a former minister in the administration of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

'€œThe PTUN [Jakarta State Administrative Court] granted the party'€™s chairmanship to us [the Djan Faridz camp], yet Yasonna recognized the leadership of Romahurmuziy as legitimate,'€ Epyardi went on.

While other parties in the opposition coalition support the motion, PAN has yet to formally endorse it, despite the presence of two of its politicians, Teguh Juwarno and Dewi Coryati, in the press briefing to announce the inquiry proposal on Tuesday.

The two PAN politicians said they had yet to receive directives from the party'€™s central board.

'€œOur presence is an act of solidarity as we are still a member of the KMP [the Red-and-White Coalition]. An official stance of the party'€™s faction will be issued after the central board makes a final decision,'€ Teguh said.

PAN is expecting a decision from Yasonna on the party'€™s new leadership, which is now controlled by new chairman Zulkifli Hasan.

The camp of Zulkifli, who is also People'€™s Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker, registered his leadership at Yasonna'€™s office last week.

The minister is expected to make his decision on Wednesday.

Parties in the ruling Great Indonesia Coalition have played down the threat against Yasonna, saying that it lacks a legal basis.

The PDI-P'€™s Aria Bima said an inquiry normally expected to hear an explanation from the president, not ministers.

'€œThe 1945 Constitution mandates this. This is why we'€™ve been wondering why such a proposal has been is aimed at Pak Yasonna instead of the President,'€ Aria said.