Muninggar Saraswati & Antara – Declaring that he would not back down in the race to assume the chairmanship of the Indonesian Democratic Party for Struggle (PDI-P), Guruh Sukarnoputra on Thursday said that he was not so sure millions of Indonesians would once again vote a woman as head of state.

"Indonesians have not fully accepted a woman for president," said the brother of former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, the first woman to lead Indonesia.

Guruh claimed that he had managed to secure the support of 500 local branches of the party ahead of the upcoming national congress in April, which will vote on the next chairman, and was not too worried about the political plans of Puan Maharani, Megawati's daughter.

"Puan is the daughter of Taufik Kiemas. Guruh is the son of Sukarno," said Guruh, the youngest son of the county's founding president, who like Guruh, seemed to enjoy talking in the third person.

Guruh criticized the PDI-P's central board for issuing an official memo directing lower party branches to support Megawati as the sole candidate to lead the party.

"They continue to push Mega to lead PDI-P. She has said she is tired. So many want change," Guruh said, adding that there seemed to exist a kind of "autocratic rule" by the elite within the PDI-P, much like the days of former president Suharto and his Golkar Party.

"The condition in the PDI-P right now is similar to that of Suharto, who was pushed to lead the country for a seventh time even though he had given indications he would step down," Guruh said, adding that Megawati had been elected PDI-P chairperson three times, leading the party since her election in 1993 following a New Order-government sponsored conflict within the Indonesian Democratic Party, or the PDI.

The resulting splinter group was named PDI Pro-Mega, before being renamed PDI-P.

The party is facing the problem of "regenerating leaders" to replace Megawati, who managed to woo supporters mainly because she is the daughter of the country's popular first president.

Separately, Megawati's husband Taufik Kiemas, chairman of the People's Consultative Council (MPR), pointed out that Guruh's challenge was coming too late.

"A candidate must get support from 3,600 of a total 7,000 branches at the subdistrict level as well as support from 33 provincial branches and 512 regency branches," Taufik said, adding that Guruh should have started to approach branches last year.