T

he just concluded congress of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has stirred controversy, not only because of the strategic party posts its reelected chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri entrusted to politicians embroiled in corruption cases, but also because of her deep incursion into the state'€™s territory '€” merely because a party member, Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo, is the President.

It was probably a coincidence that party member Andriansyah, also a House of Representatives lawmaker, was caught by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) allegedly in the act of receiving bribes from a businessman on the sidelines of the congress in Bali. But Megawati'€™s choices of graft-tainted figures as new party executives has sent the wrong signal about the party'€™s lack of commitment to the fight against corruption, which to some extent was illustrated in its attack on the KPK in connection to the nomination of Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan for chief of the National Police.

Apparently, the case of Budi Gunawan, whose nomination was eventually dropped by Jokowi, was among the sources of friction between the PDI-P and the President that Megawati underscored at the Bali congress. Clearly in her speech on Saturday, Megawati referred to Jokowi, Cabinet ministers and lawmakers as '€œparty officers'€ and if they objected to the label they had better quit the PDI-P. Even some insiders have called the remark '€œrude'€ and out of proportion.

The way Megawati treated Jokowi is a bad lesson for democracy, to which she is indebted after she guided the party to legislative election wins in 1999 and 2014. Megawati herself should thank democracy for making her president in 2001-2004.

As a former president, Megawati should know that having taken his presidential oath on Oct. 20, 2014, Jokowi no longer belongs to the PDI-P or its allies but to the people of Indonesia. Loyalty to the party ends where loyalty to the state begins.

It was natural for Jokowi to '€œpay back'€ the support of the PDI-P-led coalition by allocating Cabinet seats and government posts to members of those parties, as it was important that he picked people he could trust to help him run the administration. However, this does not mean the parties or their leaders can force their will on the President, who is bound to the Constitution.

Instead of bowing to the PDI-P'€™s wishes, President Jokowi should abide by the Constitution and fight for all Indonesian people, regardless of their political affiliation. In the worst-case scenario, the President can even act against his own party if he deems it to be putting the welfare of the nation at risk.

Jokowi may well avoid any head-on collision with Megawati, but for the sake of democracy and the sanctity of his oath he should not follow her orders. Indonesia has adopted the presidential system of government, in which the President is the center of gravity, not the House, let alone a political party.

However tricky the dilemma Jokowi is facing, he must face it and resolve it.