Adisti Sukma Sawitri, Jakarta – Observers said political parties backing Fauzi Bowo and Prijanto could not demand much from the duo as they had not contributed to their victory in the Jakarta gubernatorial election last week.
Fauzi had won based on his identity and not the work of the 19-strong coalition behind him, said a political analyst with the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Indra Jaya Piliang.
If there was one request the political parties wanted to make of Fauzi, it was that Jakarta not be impacted by different ideologies or dominated by certain political parties, Indra said. They wanted Fauzi to ensure a smooth 2009 presidential election.
Indra said, "...some 40 percent of voters sided with (Fauzi's) rival in the election, so it is best he works for the public (and not his) parties".
Electronic counting at the Jakarta Election Commission saw Fauzi win 57.79 percent of 3.6 million counted votes, despite the coalition winning 75 percent of the city's political threshold in the 2004 legislative election.
The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) saw a significant increase in support for Adang Daradjatun toward election day. The party managed to collect some 1.5 million voters in the election. In the 2004 election it earned some 1 million.
Furthermore, the PKS was the most successful party in Jakarta in the 2004 legislative election, winning 24 percent of the 4 million votes counted. The 2004 election saw a voter turnout of around 71 percent.
Indra said Fauzi could show some favor for his parties by performing well as governor, which could in turn project a favorable image of the 19-party coalition in the lead-up to the 2009 elections.
He cited as an example Sutiyoso's series of evictions in the lead-up to the 2004 elections, which saw the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, his supporting party, lose its domination of the city at that time.
Arbi Sanit of the University of Indonesia said the political platform for the gubernatorial election was "too pragmatic and made only to counter the domination of PKS in the city".
If there was anything offered by Fauzi in return for support from the parties, Arbi said it would have been an invisible cash transaction.
"It is not so easy to put all political parties with all ideologies in one pool behind a national figure... as there is greater political interest involved," Arbi said.
He said the national political framework was basically divided into two mainstreams – the nationalists and the non-nationalists, including Islamic parties.
Arbi said PKS' position in Jakarta might see it become a leader of the Islamic parties.