Ina Parlina and Nadya Natahadibrata, Jakarta – By recruiting his brother-in-law former Army chief Gen. (ret) Pramono Edhie Wibowo into the ruling Democratic Party, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has set his sights on building another political dynasty to last beyond his term in office, analysts have said.
The decision to approve the membership of Pramono, which many said was a precursor to his nomination as the party's presidential candidate and even replacing Yudhoyono as party chairman, has been deemed an example of nepotism, said University of Indonesia political analyst Siti Zuhro.
"It's obvious that this is a dynasty in the making within the Democratic Party, no doubt about it. The new membership of Pramono and his direct appointment as a member of the party's advisory board further confirmed the party is running on a principle of nepotism," Siti told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.
Siti said the appointment of Pramono was the final act of the Yudhoyono family in its attempts to control the ruling Democrats.
In February, Yudhoyono, who is also the party's chief patron, took over the party's leadership from former chairman Anas Urbaningrum who was being investigated by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).
Soon after being elected chairman, Yudhoyono maintained the position of his son Edhie "Ibas" Baskoro as the party's secretary-general in a leadership shake-up.
Siti said nepotism within the party could severely affect its future electability rating, especially if a political novice like Pramono was appointed leader of the party or as its presidential candidate.
"The public will certainly not vote for a party that blatantly applies nepotism. It will be hard for the Democrats to increase their electability, especially given the party is facing a lot of legal problems," she said.
Based on a recent survey conducted by the state-run Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) that interviewed 1,799 voters, the Democrats are expected to get 11.1 percent of the vote, trailing the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) with 14.9 percent and the Golkar Party with 14.5 percent. The Democrats secured 20.85 percent of the vote in the 2009 legislative election.
Charta Politika analyst Yunarto Wijaya said by having members of his family controlling the party, Yudhoyono was preparing an exit strategy that would allow him to be free of potential prosecution once he left office. "SBY envisions a smooth power transition to the next government," Yunarto told the Post.
Yunarto, however, said the control of the party by Yudhoyono's family would not affect the party's performance in the 2014 election. Neither would it affect the party's electability, because most voters had not yet participated in general election in a rational manner, he went on.
"Most voters have no concerns about political dynasties. We have seen a lot of families controlling local politics and voters putting them into office again and again," Yunarto added.
Yunarto also said that although Pramono could win the party's primary, it would be unlikely to see him contest the 2014 presidential election, given the crowded field.
Popular candidates for 2014 include Jakarta Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and chief patron of the Greater Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto.
On Saturday, the Democrats executive chairman Syarief Hasan said Pramono could be the best candidate to contest the primary, which was slated for September. "He is a former Army chief and he has the capacity to compete," Syarief said.