TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Khofifah likely to compete against Gus Ipul for 3rd time
Change Size
East Java Deputy Governor Saifullah Yusuf talks to journalists about his nomination for East Java governor in the 2018 gubernatorial election at his office in Surabaya, East Java, on May 25. (JP/Wahyoe Boediwardhana)
T
he ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) and the Islam-based National Awakening Party (PKB) have sealed their political collaboration ahead of the 2018 East Java gubernatorial election, prompting many to call it yet another “watermelon” coalition.
The term refers to the signature colors of the PDI-P and PKB, which are red and green, respectively, and suggests that the partnership is, at its core, a PDI-P-led vehicle.
But PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri disagreed.
“I would agree if the watermelon was red on the outside and green inside,” the former president said at the party’s headquarters in Jakarta on Sunday.
Megawati made the statement after announcing that the PDIP would support the nomination of East Java Deputy Governor Saifullah “Gus Ipul” Yusuf, a PKB member, as its East Java gubernatorial candidate.
Gus Ipul will likely compete against Social Affairs Minister Khofifah Indar Parawansa, who has won support from the Golkar Party, the NasDem Party and the Hanura Party.
Among the 171 regions slated to elect new leaders next year are Indonesia’s most populated provinces: East Java, West Java, Central Java, and North Sumatra.
