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PDI-P, Gerindra to meet ahead of gubernatorial election
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Gembong Warsono, chairman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle’s (PDI-P) Jakarta gubernatorial candidate selection team, speaks to journalists. He said on Friday that his party would hold a meeting with the Gerindra Party to explore the possibility of forming a coalition. (tribunnews.com/Valdy Arief)
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eaders of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Gerindra Party will meet next week to discuss the possible formation of a coalition prior to the Jakarta gubernatorial election in February 2017.
“We will meet to explore our mutual perception of Jakarta in the next five years. That is what we will discuss at the meeting,” the deputy chairman of the PDI-P’s Jakarta gubernatorial candidate selection team, Gembong Warsono, said in Jakarta on Friday as quoted by kompas.com.
With 28 seats on the 106-member City Council, the PDI-P has the largest share of seats in the city and is the only party that can nominate its own candidate in the gubernatorial election. Gerindra, with 15 seats on the council, has to form a coalition with another political party to meet the threshold of 22 seats to put forward a candidate.
Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama is the only hopeful so far to have declared his candidacy as an independent, and has paired with civil servant Heru Budi Hartono. His major supporters group, Teman Ahok (Friends of Ahok), has announced that its volunteers have collected some 532,000 photocopies of the identity cards of eligible voters, as required by existing regulations for an independent ticket to run.
Meanwhile, political parties are beginning open recruitment for their respective potential candidates.
The PDI-P is considering 34 figures – comprising party members and outsiders – to become its candidate. Meanwhile, Gerindra has decided on three potential candidates – Yusril Ihza Mahendra, Sandiaga Uno and Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin.
Gembong said his party would also communicate with other political parties on the issue. He explained that the results of discussions with other parties would be shared with the party’s central executive board, which will make a decision on the party candidate.
“The central executive board will decide whether we will form a coalition with other parties or not,” Gembong added. (bbn)
