Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Megawati Sukarnoputri's replacement at the helm of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle may not necessarily come from the Sukarno family line, the matriarch herself said on Friday.

In an apparent rebuttal to her daughter Puan Maharani's announcement last week that she was ready to take on a leadership role, Megawati said there were plenty of other options within the party, which is also known as the PDI-P.

"I see there is equal opportunity," Megawati said in a meeting with reporters. "For my daughter, yes, she is a good candidate, but we must not forget that there is also Pak Pramono and Budiman Sudjatmiko and many others."

She was referring to Pramono Anung, the current PDI-P secretary general, and Budiman Sudjatmiko, a dynamic, young party cadre. Both Pramono and Budiman were present at the meeting, although they kept quiet during Megawati's announcement.

Megawati, the progeny of much-beloved founding President Sukarno, said that the Sukarno family name did not matter when deciding PDI-P leadership. She said that power would be passed according to the party's internal regulations.

"So what I mean is, it is already stipulated in the party regulations about who will replace me and become my successor," Megawati said.

Pramono Anung refused to comment on Megawati's comments when asked after the meeting.

Budiman, however, confirmed that party regulations did not state that the leadership was inherited. "And Megawati is a figure who is always strict on regulations; she is very by the book," he said.

However, Budiman also said that he did not seriously see himself as a possible candidate for the chairmanship, despite Megawati's comments about him. "It's not the first time Megawati has mentioned me," he said. "It is just a form of politeness and appreciation for a young cadre."

He also said that he had "never thought about becoming her successor." He added that he wanted to "give more to the PDI-P first, which means I must work hard in the legislature for the party."

Megawati's youngest brother, Guruh Sukarnoputra, had previously said that he was the perfect candidate to take the reigns as the head of the PDI-P. Guruh publicly questioned Puan's suitability for the role, saying that she was too young to take on the responsibility of leading a major party.