Blontank Poer and Erwida Maulia, Surakarta/Malang – Potential vice presidential candidates attended the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) meeting Tuesday, but were left guessing with no definite announcement made.
Following the closed-door party meeting, PDI-P secretary-general Pramono Anung Wibowo said some candidates had accepted nomination as the running mate of presidential candidate and party leader Megawati Soekarnoputri, but the party would not decide until the outcome of the April 9 legislative polls.
"There are candidates who have accepted nomination for contesting the presidential election as Ibu Megawati's running mate," Pramono said. He refused to identify the candidates or confirm if they were among the five figures touted as the most likely to win the post.
Yogyakarta Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, former Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung and former Jakarta governor Sutiyoso were seen attending the PDI-P two-day meeting in Surakarta, which commenced Tuesday.
The two other hopefuls, Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) leader Hidayat Nur Wahid and Prabowo Subianto, founder of Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party, sent representatives.
Both Akbar and Hamengkubuwono declined to comment on their response to the PDI-P offer. "Everything is up to the PDI-P," said Akbar, the House of Representatives speaker detained for alleged graft during Megawati's tenure as president in 2002.
The Sultan, who met Megawati twice within a week prior to the Surakarta gathering, expressed similar sentiments. "I don't want to be overconfident by saying yes or no to the offer," he said.
Other potential candidates for Megawati's running mate are Gorontalo Governor Fadel Muhammad and Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi.
Separately, presidential spokesman and deputy head of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party, Andi Malarangeng, said Megawati's accusation that the incumbent misled the public about the government's achievements was a political stunt that would not affect the President's popularity.
"The same trick failed in 2004, and it will fail again too in the upcoming elections," Andi told a press conference in Malang.
Megawati said recently the government was playing its people like 'a yoyo game' by taking credit for pro-poverty programs, including fuel price cuts, while allowing underprivileged people to continue suffering.
Andi said the Yudhoyono administration had raised incomes, education and health budgets, rice production and lowered fuel prices.