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Analysis: PDI-P, Jokowi go their separate ways, finally
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(From left to right) Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chair Megawati Soekarnoputri, President Joko “Jokowi“ Widodo, Vice President Ma'ruf Amin and presidential candidate and former Central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo attend an event celebrating the nation’s founding president, Sukarno, at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta on June 24, 2023. (AFP/Gyl Batara)
Q
uestions about ties between former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) have finally found an answer. The PDI-P has formally expelled Jokowi and his family, marking a significant turning point for the party, which helped Jokowi catapult to the presidency twice in 2014 and 2019.
Tensions between the two former allies resurfaced recently when Jokowi told reporters on Dec. 3 that he still possessed his PDI-P membership card, reigniting questions about his and his family’s status within the party. In response, PDI-P secretary-general Hasto Kristiyanto announced that Jokowi, his son Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka and his son-in-law, the likely winner of the North Sumatra gubernatorial race, Bobby Nasution, were no longer members of the party.
Hasto cited the failure of the three individuals to toe the party line and adhere to commitments as the reasons for their dismissal. The expulsion was announced alongside 27 other party members who were deemed disloyal for supporting rival candidates in November’s regional elections.
The PDI-P’s ethics council head Komarudin Watubun said the party had been planning to formally expel Jokowi and his family if they did not resign voluntarily. Komarudin called Jokowi “shameless” for continuing to claim party membership despite his actions that went against the party’s policies.
Jokowi’s decades-long ties with the PDI-P began to break apart late last year when his tacit support for the Gerindra Party’s then-presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto and Gibran undermined the PDI-P’s ticket of Ganjar Pranowo and Mahfud MD. Despite the perceived betrayal, the party has refrained from immediately expelling him, reportedly to preserve his dignity as then-sitting president.
However, Bobby’s expulsion came earlier in November last year after he announced his support for the Prabowo-Gibran ticket in the presidential election. Bobby has since joined Gerindra, which subsequently nominated him the North Sumatra gubernatorial candidate to challenge the incumbent, Edy Rahmayadi.
The deep-seated rift between the PDI-P and Jokowi may have been exacerbated by the party’s losses in its traditional strongholds during the regional head elections. Central Java, East Java, Banten, North Sumatra and North Sulawesi were captured by candidates endorsed by Jokowi and backed by a Prabowo-led coalition of parties.
