Jakarta/Semarang – The leaders of the Golkar Party and Muslim-based United Development Party (PPP) are now facing internal revolts by members who oppose their decisions to back Megawati Soekarnoputri in the election runoff in September.
Golkar, the PPP and the Christian-orientated Prosperous Peace Party (PDS) agreed on Thursday to join forces with the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) in supporting Megawati's bid for a full term as president. They also agreed to form a loose coalition in the House of Representatives and local legislatures until 2009.
Dozens of PPP Jakarta branch leaders went to the party's headquarters on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta, on Friday to protest against the coalition decision. "We reject the coalition as it restricts the rights of the party executives and members in making political decisions," said Mulyadi, the secretary of the PPP's youth wing, Ka'bah Youth Movement (GPK), after a meeting with the party's secretary-general, Yunus Yosfiah.
Accompanied by dozens of party members from the Jakarta branch, Mulyadi said that most PPP members in Jakarta supported Megawati's rival Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his running mate Jusuf Kalla.
Yunus said the party would take action against those who refused to accept the board's decision, but refused to say if the protesters would be expelled from the party. Leaders of Golkar's West Java branch, meanwhile, said on Friday that they would stay neutral in the upcoming election, stressing that the party's supporters would refuse to accept the party decision.
"Our supporters cannot be told to vote in accordance with the central executive board's decision. It will be up to each local branch in West Java to decide on who to support," Golkar West Java chairman H.A. Nurhaman was quoted by detik.com as saying.
Golkar's Central Java branch threatened to expel those who refused to vote for Megawati or who showed support for the Susilo-Kalla ticket.
"All chapters have to vote for the Megawati-Hasyim ticket as decided by the party's national meeting. Those who support the Susilo-Kalla camp will be expelled from the party," Golkar Central Java deputy chairman Soejatno Pedro said on Friday.
Previously, Golkar's South Sulawesi and Papua branches had expressed their support for Susilo, but they later agreed to toe the party line.
Meanwhile, Golkar leader Akbar Tandjung denied suggestions on Friday that the coalition was nothing more than an exercise in horse trading with a view to securing seats in the Cabinet should Megawati win, saying that it was instead aimed at creating an effective government.
"We have the chance to discuss what kind of government we could establish. Golkar will always be ready to contribute a number of Cabinet ministers," Akbar said.
Separately, PDI-P deputy secretary Pramono Anung Wibowo said the finance, state-owned enterprise, legislation and education portfolios would be given to professionals rather than politicians. "The coalition has accepted this as a guideline for power-sharing," he said.
On Friday, Megawati and former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid attended a Hindu Agni Hotra mass prayer meeting at the Asram Gandhi Puri Swagram in Klungkung regency.
Meanwhile, Susilo continued his pressing-the-flesh tour by attending Friday prayers at the Nurul Huda mosque in Cengkareng, West Jakarta, while his running mate traveled to Semarang, Central Java, to attend a National Committee of Indonesian Youth (KNPI) national meeting.