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PKS opposition strength in question
The Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has seen an increase in its vote share in the legislative election, but critics have doubted that it is enough to keep its role in opposition
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span>The Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) has seen an increase in its vote share in the legislative election, but critics have doubted that it is enough to keep its role in opposition.
The religious conservative party won 8.2 percent of the vote in April, according to the General Elections Commission (KPU), more than the 6.8 percent it obtained five years ago, indicating that it would secure more seats at the House of Representatives.
Yet, unlike the 2014 election, the party may not control the House leadership or lead any commissions due to the new law regulating the legislative body.
According to the Legislative Institutions (MD3) Law, the House speaker post and the other four House deputy speaker seats must be filled by the five political parties with the largest number of votes gathered in April.
Among lawmakers, the House speakership is considered strategic as it is the highest decision maker in the legislative body. Currently, the PKS’ position as a government critic is strengthened by the deputy speaker post occupied by its member Fahri Hamzah.
The party has opposed deliberation of the sexual violence bill, as well as supporting efforts to criminalize adultery and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.
“We have wholeheartedly accepted that we won’t get any seats on the leadership board, because it’s all that we can get. We’re not among the fifth biggest parties,” PKS faction chairman Jazuli Juwaini said on Thursday.
However, Jazuli said the PKS still wanted to negotiate with the big parties to secure its post in the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR), the composition of which does not depend on the list of winning parties.
“All parties have the chance to get the MPR’s speakership posts. Why aren’t the posts given to the parties that don’t get seats on the House’s board,” Jazuli said.
According to the Constitution, the assembly has the authority to appoint an acting president or vice president when the President is permanently unavailable in office. MPR speakership posts have also been proven to strengthen the clout of related political parties.
National Mandate Party (PAN) chairman Zulkifli Hasan, for example, has been MPR speaker since 2014. While his party has a relatively small number of seats in the House, its senior members have successfully secured ministerial positions and posts in other leading government institutions.
The PKS is currently part of the opposition coalition — along with the Gerindra Party, Democratic Party and PAN — which supports presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto.
With Prabowo losing in the presidential election, Dems and PAN party executives have showed interest in joining incumbent President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in his second term. It will leave only the PKS and Prabowo’s Gerindra in the opposition camp.
Unlike the Dems and Gerindra that have a nationalist leaning, which is similar to Jokowi’s supporting parties, the PKS has become a strange bedfellow even in the Prabowo coalition as it has a different stance toward the sexual violence bill as well as other legislation promoting women’s rights. Gerindra, for instance, supports the sexual violence bill to increase protection of women from violence.
And unlike PAN, the party was never part of Jokowi’s administration in his first term.
PKS executives have declined the possibility of joining the government, even if, in the worse case, the PKS may stand alone as an opposing party.
PKS member Mardani Ali Sera ensured that his party would stay in the opposition to “balance the legislative power”.
Political observer Adi Prayitno of Syarif Hidayatullah Islamic State University (UIN) Jakarta said the PKS would still be able to influence the public although it would not have a strong position in legislative bodies and the government.
“The PKS could propose political agendas that have more quality, they also have to be inclusive, to be open to other parties that have different preferences than them so that they can get support,” Adi said. (dmy)
