Ina Parlina, Jakarta – Democratic Party chief patron Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Friday took over leadership of the ruling party, which has been ravaged by internal conflicts and a slew of graft scandals involving many of its top brass, including party chairman Anas Urbaningrum.
In a press conference held in Cikeas, Bogor, West Java, late on Friday, Yudhoyono announced eight emergency policies and eight priority policies to salvage the party from its worst crisis since its establishment in 2003.
The President said that as the chairman of the party's general assembly, he was now leading what he called an initiative to salvage and consolidate the party. "The chairman of the party's assembly is responsible for leading the initiative to save and consolidate the party," Yudhoyono said.
He said the party would focus on purging negative elements before preparing itself to compete in the 2014 elections. The President did not officially dismiss Anas as party chairman or as the deputy of the assembly, but Yudhoyono relieved him of his duties to allow the embattled politician time to focus on his legal quagmire. The party, Yudhoyono said, would provide Anas with legal assistance.
He went on to say he would assume full control of the party until its reputation had been restored. All policies and strategic decisions would be decided by the assembly, he said.
"This decision is a must. Those who do not comply will face strict punishment. Those who are not comfortable with the Democratic Party's declining electability or those who do not like the rescue plan can leave the party," Yudhoyono said.
The statement was made after members of the party's assembly – Jero Wacik, Max Sopacua, Nurhayati Ali Assegaf, Johnny Allen Marbun, Edhie "Ibas" Baskoro, Marzuki Alie, TB Silalahi and Toto Riyanto, as well as Anas – gathered at Yudhoyono's residence in Cikeas on Friday evening.
The meeting was held to discuss the fate of the party, which has seen its electability rate slide to a new low of 8 percent from 32 percent at the height of the party's popularity in December 2009, according to Saiful Mujani Research & Consulting (SMRC).
A recent SMRC survey found that while Yudhoyono's public approval rating remained above 50 percent, it failed to buoy the popularity of the party – suggesting that internal conflicts and graft cases involving its members, including Anas, were to blame for its decline.
An SMRC survey in June 2012 showed 44.8 percent of respondents believed the Democratic Party was the most corrupt political party. The Golkar Party trailed in second place at 6.5 percent of respondents and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) came in third at 2.4 percent.
Friday's was the second meeting Yudhoyono held since his return from the Middle East on Thursday. On Thursday night, the President summoned four party members within his Cabinet: Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Minister Syariefuddin Hasan, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Jero Wacik, Law and Human Rights Minister Amir Syamsudin and Youth and Sports Minister Roy Suryo.
Anas was left out of Thursday's meeting, fueling speculation that his ouster was imminent.
Jero and Syarief were among leading voices in the party in calling for Yudhoyono to take emergency measures to salvage the party, which many have seen as a call for the party's chief patron to remove Anas.
Anas has rejected claims that he was responsible for the problems ailing the party, saying that removing him from his position would not save the ruling party. His defiance led to an open conflict between his supporters and those calling for his ouster.
On Friday, rumors circulated that the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) had named Anas a suspect in the Hambalang graft case. Though the KPK quashed those rumors in a press conference, such charges could be used by Anas' party rivals to dismiss him without having to convene an emergency congress.