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SBY ‘overconfident’ in picking son for Jakarta election: Analyst
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Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono kisses the hand of his father, former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, at the father’s cerebration of his 66th birthday on Sept. 9, 2015. (courtesy of twitter.com/agusyudhoyono)
F
ormer president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is overconfident in recommending his eldest son, Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, for the top job in the capital, a political analyst has said.
As announced on Friday morning, the army major aims to challenge Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama in the election next year, with the Jakarta governor assistant for culture and tourism, Sylviana Murni, nominated as his running mate.
“SBY believes that Agus can represent his big name. There is [an element of] political speculation in Yudhoyono’s decision to deploy his own son. He is confident that his name can push the electability of Agus,” Yunarto Wijaya of Charta Politika told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
Yunarto expressed doubt, however, over Agus’ ability to collect a significant number of votes in the election on Feb. 15. “I still don’t know how the public will take to Agus, because his name has never been listed in any survey.”
Yunarto said that since Agus had no experience in politics, he would rely on the political machines of the four parties backing him, namely the Democratic Party, the United Development Party (PPP), the National Awakening Party (PKB) and the National Mandate Party (PAN).
Meanwhile, Sylviana, a career bureaucrat, would help Agus in administration affairs, Yunarto said. “Sylviana has long experience in the bureaucracy, and her performance is good. Ahok even praised Sylviana for her good performance,” he explained.
Those parties may believe that Agus had good personal branding to help him beat Ahok in the election, but personal branding was not enough, because residents preferred a figure that could develop the city, Yunarto said. (bbn)
