T

he bigger they are, the harder they fall.

The free-for-all politics of Indonesia over the last decade has taught us a valuable lesson well known to other democracies: There is no such thing as an absolutely “clean” political party.

Power corrupts absolutely. It doesn’t matter if we are talking about the National Awakening Party (PKB), the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) or the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) – all have been lured by avarice, a relentless vice that constantly tempts those who have had their first whiff of power.

The Democratic Party has proven to be no different, and in some ways worse, by resolving to blame others
for the corruption scandal allegedly implicating former party treasurer Muhammad Nazaruddin, among
others.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, as the party’s chief patron, on Monday launched a salvo of diatribes,
saying his party was a victim of intrigue perpetrated by media organizations and other “invisible hands” trying to divide the party.

One cannot help but smile and shake one’s head as Yudhoyono lambasted “unchivalrous politics” aimed at discrediting the Democratic Party while all the while “unchivalrously” censuring the press as the cause of his party’s problems.

Unsurprisingly a slew of criticism has appeared in local headlines as media observers and the Press Council lambasted Yudhoyono for wallowing in self pity.

One should no longer be taken aback at such behavior. The “blame game” attitude has increasingly become a characteristic of the Yudhoyono administration. Instead of humble introspection, they maintain a pretense of innocence while holding others at fault. It exemplifies weak leadership.

It is the same when Yudhoyono blamed his Cabinet last week, all the while neglecting the failures that should be his sole burden as the chief executive.

Polls showing a decline in Yudhoyono’s popularity are testament to the fact that people are tired of a president who seems to be more concerned about his image than his country.

Nevertheless there is still every reason to believe that the Democratic Party can survive these indignities. There is still time to clean house and regain the trust of the voting public.

One painful strategy that must be undertaken is to demonstrate transparency and accountability to the
public without hiding behind the shirttails of a president who technically holds no executive power within the party.

The most damaging outcome of Monday’s charade is a perception that the Democratic Party is nothing but a stooge of the Yudhoyono family and its inner circle.

The picture of Yudhoyono making grotesque counter-accusations as the party’s top executives – including his son – stood glumly in the background reinforced the cult of personality being built around a man who once carried the democratic hopes of this nation.

Like the PDI-P and its leader, Megawati Soekarnoputri, ultimately the Democratic Party will soon find that their strongest asset is their biggest liability.