Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta – The Golkar Party should aim at being a "friend" to the people through its programs if it wishes to regain supremacy in the country's political arena, aspiring party leaders and Golkar members say.

Chairman candidate and Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare, Aburizal Bakrie, said the main challenges facing the party were not issues of coalescing with the government.

"The toughest problem is how to turn Golkar into a 'favorite' party for the people," Aburizal's spokesman, Lalu Mara Satriawangsa, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Lalu said that if Abdurizal was elected, he would set up a think-thank tasked with analyzing government policies and international affairs.

"If the government makes the right decision, Golkar will support it. Aburizal will be in the front criticizing any policy however that is not friendly to the people," he said.

Aburizal, a businessman who has promised to donate Rp 1 trillion (US$100 million) in a perpetual fund for the party, has promoted four key points – known locally as Catur Sukses – in his pledge for developing Golkar in the next five years.

"Aburizal will ensure successful consolidation, recruitment, democracy and general elections in 2014," Lalu said.

Golkar will hold its national congress in October to elect a new chairman to replace Vice President Jusuf Kalla, who was defeated in the July presidential election.

Meanwhile, young chairman candidates Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra and lawmaker Yuddy Chrisnandi said if Golkar wanted to bring back the "glory days" of the party under the New Order era, it would have to run independently.

"Golkar will not coalesce with the government," Tommy, the youngest son of the late former president Soeharto, said Thursday as he officially declared his bid for the leadership position. Tommy promised to promote a free schooling system to strengthen national education levels.

Yuddy, a former spokesman for Kalla's presidential campaign team, said if elected he would lead the party to victory in the legislative and presidential elections in 2014.

Commenting on Tommy's candidacy, Yuddy said he would remain defiant in the face of candidates with more financial strength.

"I have the least financial power compared to them, and we all know that financial power is a major factor in the Golkar's chairmanship race," Yuddy said Friday at the House of Representatives. "However, I believe that compared to them, my idealism and vision puts me in with the best chance."

Yuddy said the fact Tommy was being considered as a candidate despite not having met several key requirements for the race showed internal regulations were too easily being bent. "So, don't be surprised if we see more and more tycoons joining Golkar's chairmanship race in the future," he said.

Golkar senior member Poempida Hidayatulloh said none of the candidates had "sharp" programs that would make Golkar any better in the future. "Their agendas are still too shallow," he told the Post.

Another member, Harry Azar, said the next Golkar chairman should be able to rebuild public trust through its programs. "Otherwise, people will leave the party. It is not a matter of coalescing or opposing the government." (hdt)