Jakarta – Ex-president Abdurrahman Wahid has thrown his weight behind President Megawati Sukarnoputri's rival in next month's election but said his party had yet to decide which candidate it would back.
uMr Abdurrahman – also known as Gus Dur – who is from the National Awakening Party (PKB) and is an influential leader in Indonesia's largest Islamic group, the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), announced his support for Mr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono after meeting him on Saturday, the Kompas daily reported.
Asked whether he backed the ex-general's bid for the presidency, he said: 'Personally, yes.' He said he had asked his daughter Yenny Zanuba Wahid to take part in Mr Bambang's campaign.
But he added that his support was given in his personal capacity and not on behalf of the PKB. The party would decide on whom to support at a national congress this week.
The ex-president, barred from running this time on health grounds, said he respected Mr Bambang whose campaign in the first round of the July 5 presidential vote had been the 'most polite' among the candidates.
Ms Megawati and Mr Abdurrahman have had a strained relationship after he accused her of not defending him when the National Assembly ousted him from the presidency in 2001 and appointed her in his place.
Incumbent President Megawati and Mr Bambang will contest the September 20 run-off.
Mr Bambang last week also won the support of a popular Islamic party, the Prosperous Justice Party. Two former presidential candidates meanwhile announced that they would stay neutral in the coming polls.
Former general Wiranto and Dr Amien Rais, who finished third and fourth respectively in the first round of the presidential election on July 5, also pledged to respect and support whoever was elected president.
"We give our party leaders and sympathisers the freedom to vote for either candidate in the upcoming election," said Dr Amien.
On Ms Megawati's campaign front, leaders of the so-called national coalition of four major parties held their first plenary meeting on Friday to consolidate their rank and file and draw up a strategy to help President Megawati win in the run-off.
They decided to intensify efforts to mobilise support among constituents of the four parties and build the image of Ms Megawati and her running mate Hasyim Muzadi.
"We will counter the public perception that the pair doesn't represent reform nor commit to corruption eradication," said Golkar Party and coalition leader Akbar Tandjung.
All chapters and branches of the four parties would be involved in the campaign. "All members of the coalition will share the burden of financing activities," he told reporters.