Mafoot Simon – All was quiet in the Islamic religious school on the outskirts of this city at the weekend, as students and workers went about their business, in stark contrast to a fortnight ago.
Then, a convoy of cars heralded the arrival of presidential hopeful Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana and an entourage of VIPs out to woo the heartlander vote.
Better known as Mbak Tutut, the eldest daughter of former president Suharto, had pulled into town to tap a yearning for the good old days of her father's rule.
"There were so many important figures, and so many cars," said one resident who declined to be named.
The visit, and another by heads of religious schools, known as pesantren, to Mr Suharto's house in Jakarta a few days later, caused anguish within the 40-million-strong Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Indonesia's biggest Islamic organisation.
Some observers say the prospects of the Nation Awakening Party (PKB) – the party that draws most of its backing from the NU – could be affected in next month's legislative election.
In 1999, East Java yielded the PKB just one seat more than incumbent President Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party (Struggle) (PDI-P). This time, 100 seats in the regional parliament are up for grabs.
NU leaders have said that the religious school heads who called on Mr Suharto were not from the NU hierarchy.
The irrepressible NU founder and former Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid, known as Gus Dur, was more graphic. He described them as 'peanuts' and leaders with only a handful of followers.
There have also been denials of any party ties. "We want to make it clear that Pesantren Sidogiri has no affiliation with any political party," declared the manager of the 257-year-old pesantren, Haji Bahruddin Thoyyib, when The Straits Times went to visit.
It had issued a press statement denying that its leader, K. H. Nawawi Abdul Djalil, was aware that Mbak Tutut would be present at the Feb 19 event, which was meant to be the official opening of the year-old Pesantren Cangaan II – part of a network of pesantren run by the Nawawi family.
It also denied that its leader was among the pesantren heads who visited Pak Harto at Cendana, on Feb 23.
The furore over the visit is but the latest in a series of public spats among leaders of the NU and the PKB as election fever rises.
During the past few months, several pesantren leaders have jumped ship and joined the Islamic United Development Party (PPP). Prominent among them was a pesantren head from Situbondo, K.H. Fawaid As'ad, who once said: 'Why should I be loyal to PKB? What do I get from Gus Dur?' Academic Daniel Sparringa remembered that during the 1999 election, K.H. Fawaid was instrumental in bringing his followers into the fold of the PKB from the PPP. And now, he has urged votes for the latter also.
And when NU leader Hashim Muzadi hinted that its members should support the PKB in the legislative election, it raised complaints from other NU members in rival political parties. Meanwhile, Mr Abdurrahman has said he wants to stand as a candidate in the presidential election in July.
Not long after, Ms Megawati, leader of the PKB's rival in East Java, visited Mr Hashim with an offer to be her running mate.
The developments caused much hand-wringing within the NU. "I have not seen something like this the last five years," said Dr Sparringa.
And although the PKB tried to downplay the move by some pesantren heads to the PPP, it is important because one, led by Kiai Haji Fawaid, has a big following all over Madura and the region known as the Horse Shoe.
The number of the alumni is not immediately available but the students now studying in the pesantren number more than 20,000, he said.
"Kiai Fawaid has already asked his alumni to follow in his footsteps to leave PKB and join PPP," he said. (Kiai is a form of address like Mr.) Journalist Faisol Taselan, of Media Indonesia, said the move by Kiai Fawaid recently was the worst that could have happened to the PKB. He is certain it would have a negative impact on the party's chances at the election.
"Mbak Tutut may woo the breakaway group from PKB to support her but the real beneficiary will be PPP," he said.
But Dr Sparinga cautioned that the big question is whether Kiai Fawaid's departure from the PKB will benefit the PPP substantially. "Although symbolically it is very important, it doesn't mean automatically it would affect the votes for PKB in the election." One NU leader clearly disappointed with recent developments within the organisation is its regional leader, Mr Ali Maschan Moesa, who laments the trend of too many NU leaders spending more time on politics than religious works.
He said that was why, in 1973, the NU stopped being a political party after 21 years. "The basis of politics is conflicts," he said in his modest house in central Surabaya. He insisted that the PKB, set up for the 1999 election, was not the political arm of the NU. The NU was merely "facilitating the birth of PKB during the euphoric years of the late 90s".
"Politics is about power but power is limited while those who yearn for power are many. That"s why the conflicts,' he said. He admitted rivalry soon appeared between the NU and PKB leadership.
Academic Abdul Salam Nawawi, of the Institut Agama Islam Negeri (Iain), said that although the relationship among some NU leaders and the PKB was "less harmonious" now, the NU is still strong in East Java. He was confident that the differences of opinion within the NU leadership would not split the party.
Unlike Mr Ali, Mr Abdul Salam saw no harm in religious leaders taking part in politics. "Ulama will not be effective if they try to fight corruption only through sermons. They must have the political strength to carry out their plans to fight corruption. Also, not everyone is corrupt. The important thing is to find ways and means to increase the number of this group of people," he said.
PKB candidate Mohammad Saeri was not concerned about NU leaders or pesantren heads who switch parties – NU leaders Hasyim Muzadi and Alwi Shihab were still icons in the eyes of NU members. He described the movements as "zig-zagging" in the interests of their own pesantren. But Pasuruan is infamous as a trouble spot during elections because "our people are easily provoked", said Mr Saeri.
It remains to be seen whether the internal conflicts within NU and the "zig-zagging" of some pesantren heads will allow a peaceful poll process in East Java.