The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has suffered ups and downs throughout its existence. The party is currently at the peak of its performance, controlling both the executive and legislative branches of the government. The Jakarta Post’s Nurul Fitri Ramadhani and Imanuddin Razak take a close look at the party’s struggle and eventual rise to its current prominence.

“When we fall, [we] rise again; when we fall again, then rise again. We have won twice. Could we get the third glory?” PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri told the party’s recent national working meeting at the JIEXPO Kemayoran, North Jakarta. Her political oration marked the 47th anniversary of the country’s largest ruling party.

“Forty-seven years is not a short time,” said the country’s fourth president and daughter of founding president Sukarno.

What Megawati said in front of thousands of her fellow members and a number of high-level state officials, including President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, truly portrays the ups and downs of the party that was established in 1973 during the New Order government of then-president Soeharto.

The party was named the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) when it was established by merging five political parties. Having suffered from prolonged internal dispute, then turning itself into an opposition party, before it eventually became the biggest ruling party under its current name PDI-P, party figures, particularly its senior figures, know well how those things feel.

The PDI had faced internal conflict even since the party’s very first national congress to appoint a chairman. Several party executives and senior politicians tell in brief how conflicts emerged from its first congress in 1973 to the fourth congress in 1993.

In the 1993 congress held in Medan, North Sumatra, for instance, then incumbent chairman Soerjadi came up as the frontrunner to continue his leadership in PDI, but the government, which heavily intervened in the party, signaled its support for Budi Hardjono. Soerjadi eventually secured support to continue his leadership, yet a number of members were against him and messed with the congress’ proceedings, resulting in it failing.

At the end of 1993, an extraordinary congress was held in Surabaya, East Java, with Megawati being listed as one of the candidates for the party leadership. The government was said to have tried to prevent Megawati from leading the party as she was seen only as the scion of Sukarno’s political dynasty. It even banned the PDI members from supporting Megawati. However, Megawati still got her way and was elected as the party’s chairwoman.

In 1996, Soerjadi and his loyalists held another congress in Medan, where he was declared as party chairman. The government of president Soeharto recognized the PDI’s Soerjadi leadership and later declared Soerjadi’s PDI as an eligible party to contest the 1997 general elections. The leadership dispute obviously resulted in Soerjadi’s PDI suffering a humiliating result as it could only garner 11 legislative seats, its lowest election achievement ever.

After Soeharto stepped down in May 1998 amid a combination of political and financial crises, Megawati’s PDI had the opportunity to contest the 1999 general elections but only with a different name. On Feb. 1, 1999, Megawati officially changed its name to PDI-P.

Smart choice: Then-presidential candidate Joko “Jokowi” Widodo (center) of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), accompanied by PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri (right) and the party’s chief for its 2014 election campaign team, Puan Maharani (seated, third left), addresses a media conference at Megawati’s residence in Kebagusan, South Jakarta, on election day on July 9, 2014. Jokowi won the 2014 presidential election and repeated his feat in the April 17, 2019 presidential election. (JP/Seto Wardhana)

The PDI-P surprisingly won the 1999 legislative elections, securing 153 seats in the House of Representatives. However, Megawati did not get the presidential seat as the indirect presidential election held through the plenary session of the People’s Consultative Assembly voted for Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid as president and for her as vice president.

In July 2001, Gus Dur quit as president, paving the way for Megawati to take the country’s top post, becoming the Indonesia’s first female president. Her rise to presidency, however, was not followed with satisfactory results by her party in the 2004 and 2009 legislative elections when the PDI-P secured only 109 and 95 seats, respectively.

Fortunately, the PDI-P still managed to be one of the top three political parties. It came second after the Golkar Party in the 2004 legislative elections and went down to third position after the Democratic Party and Golkar in the 2009 elections. While other parties jumped ship to join the government coalition, the PDI-P remained consistent as an opposition party for 10 years.

As her party failed to get to the top in the two elections, Megawati herself also failed in her bid for presidency in 2004 when direct presidential elections were introduced and also in the subsequent 2009 presidential election. The Democrat’s Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was elected president for two consecutive periods: 2004 to 2009 and 2009 to 2014.

Megawati still had the opportunity to contest the 2014 presidential election, especially because the PDI-P still wanted her to run. She, however, took a bold decision and named Jokowi, who was then the Jakarta governor, as the party’s candidate instead.

The result was beyond expectation as the PDI-P secured some 19 percent of the votes, winning 109 seats in the House, thus topping the legislative race. Jokowi was then elected as president.

When Jokowi was reelected in the 2019 presidential race, the PDI-P also enjoyed an increase in legislative power by securing 128 seats. Its member, Puan Maharani, who is also Megawati’s daughter, currently sits as the House speaker because of the House’s internal regulation that stipulates that the election winner is granted the House speakership.

Speaking about the key for the PDI-P’s victory in the last two general elections, Megawati was firm in saying that her party did not only talk, but also walked the talk.

“Banteng (bull) politicians do not talk only and are not busy [building] political images […] We work for the people and the county,” she said when addressing the recent PDI-P national working meeting. Bull refers to the symbol of the party.

PDI-P deputy chairman Bambang Wuryanto added another key point in explaining the party’s success in the elections, while at the same time explaining the point mentioned by Megawati.

“We always solve all problems together. We never let them be individual problems. […] All of this because we never look for a good political image. The most important thing is that we work [for the people],” Bambang told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the meeting.

A PDI-P senior politician, who is also a former party secretary-general, Sabam Sirait, said he believed that the figure of Megawati has turned into a symbol that has made the party solid. That is the reason why he, as one of the party’s influential members, supports Megawati to keep leading the party.

History has said that Sabam played the major role in bringing Megawati into politics despite the repressive government of Soeharto. He asked Megawati several times to join the PDI before Megawati — and her late husband Taufik Kiemas — eventually agreed to become party members.

Apart from Megawati’s role, Sabam cited strong ideology — a combination of Pancasila and nationalism — as key in making the PDI-P a big political party.

“A political party, indeed, has to have an ideology and party leaders should teach their members political aspects in reference to that ideology,” Sabam told the Post in a recent telephone interview.

Apparently, however, the Megawati and ideology factors are not the only keys to the PDI-P’s rise to prominence. Many also believe that the PDI-P is on the top of political power thanks to Jokowi.

In their eyes, Jokowi has shown a low-profile and millennial image, yet still can prove that he is a hard worker. They were referring to the Jokowi administration’s slogan “Kerja, kerja, kerja” (Work, work, work), which has attracted empathy.

It is Jokowi’s personality and character that has contributed to the PDI-P’s victory. Even though he had actually been accused of being a communist — a stigma that would have effectively killed one’s character and eliminate his or her political career during the New Order administration — ahead of the 2014 and 2019 presidential elections, almost all surveys and pollsters showed that the PDI-D remained in the top ranks, mainly thanks to Jokowi.

All negative sentiments and communist accusations have been unable to bring the PDI-P down.

“Let go of what they say. We just need to move forward. Those who say those [accusations] only want to win, but in a dishonorable way,” Megawati told party members at the anniversary celebration.

Hendri Satrio, a political analyst from Paramadina University in Jakarta and director of Kedai Kopi pollster, however, declared Sukarno as the most influential factor of the PDI-P’s strength and prominence. Founding president Sukarno was known for his great contribution to the declaration of the country’s independence in August 1945.

“The figure of Sukarno contributes a lot [to the PDI-P’s success],” Hendri said. “Most people actually do not care about the PDI-P, but when they see PDI-P, they see Sukarno. Thus, the offspring of Sukarno has become the party’s strongest image.”

Hendri said the party would have difficulty to find Megawati’s successor once she stepped down, unless one of her children, either Puan or Prananda Prabowo, took the helm. In the party’s congress last year, speculation was rife that Puan and Prananda would race for the party’s top post. Yet, the party apparently opted to keep Megawati to lead the party.

Apart from Puan and Prananda, speculation is also rife that Jokowi could be Megawati’s successor. Hendri, however, said he believes the party would not take the risk and would keep appointing a Sukarno descendant as top party leader.

“It won’t matter for the PDI-P if Jokowi is no longer president. What matter most is when there is no Sukarno descendant in there,” Hendri said.

Despite the glorious story of the PDI-P’s staying power amid repression, the party — as most other political parties — is mired in corruption cases that allegedly implicate its members.

The latest case in point is the dispute between the General Elections Commission (KPU) and the PDI-P over who should take over a legislative seat left vacant by a deceased PDI-P politician. The case developed into one involving corruption after the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) arrested a KPU commissioner for allegedly accepting Rp 600 million (US$43,950) from a PDI-P member. It grew worse after the PDI-D was accused of tampering with the investigation into the case, which also implicates the party’s secretary-general, Hasto Kristiyanto.

The investigation into the case is underway. We should await the end of the story.