Yogyakarta/Malang – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has made it clear he will look beyond Golkar Chairman and Vice President Jusuf Kalla for a suitable running partner in the upcoming presidential elections.
Speaking at a media conference at his private residence in Cikeas, near Bogor on Sunday, Yudhoyono said the fact Kalla had declared his presidential bid meant it would be impossible for them to contest the July presidential election as a duo.
"Six months ago I said it was very possible Pak JK and I would remain a pair [in the upcoming presidential elections]. There was about a 70 percent possibility of that."
"But look at the recent political dynamics. Golkar wants to support its own presidential candidate, and Pak JK has declared himself as that candidate. I would have been very embarrassed had I said I would surely pair up with him again," Yudhoyono said.
He said, however, he could not yet announce the name of his running mate for the July presidential elections because he would not "clap with one hand".
He said he would seek a running mate who had "good integrity", "good capacity", and preferably "good chemistry", though refused to mention any names. "I can't give the details. Let the political process ripen this [candidacy]."
Kalla said after meeting with 28 Golkar provincial leaders in Yogyakarta on Saturday that his candidacy had reached a point of no return.
During the meeting, the regional leaders signed a statement supporting Kalla's presidential bid, confirming suspicions raised last month in Jakarta that they would nominate the party chairman as their presidential candidate.
Kalla visited the East Java town of Pasuruan on Sunday to hold a closed-door meeting with 40 Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) influential clerics at Raudlatul Ulum Islamic boarding school. East Java Deputy Governor Saifullah Yusuf in his capacity as NU youth wing Anshor was excluded from the two-hour meeting. Spokesman for the clerics Anwar Iskandar dismissed speculation that the meeting discussed Kalla's presidential bid.
A number of surveys have found Kalla's electability is far lower than other candidates, even than fellow Golkar member Sultan Hamengkubuwono X.
Shrugging off these predictions, Kalla has lobbied a number of political parties and leaders for support, including the leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and former president Megawati Soekarnoputri, whom he met with last Thursday. The two party leaders signed an agreement but avoided committing to a coalition.
Yudhoyono said he was unperturbed by the highly anticipated meeting between the leaders of the country's two largest parties, saying it was simply the nature of politics. "I hold no prejudice about them meeting. It is common for leaders to meet ahead of the elections," he said.
It was the first statement Yudhoyono had made in response to a closed-door meeting between Kalla and Megawati, which occurred the same day Yudhoyono cancelled plans to inaugurate a number of projects in South Sulawesi, Kalla's homeland, due to gastric pain. Doctors suggested the President reduce the intensity of his activities following his illness.
Yudhoyono said he would be meeting Megawati for the sake of maintaining silaturahim (good relationship) if she wished to engage in dialogue.