Yeremia Sukoyo & Carlos Paath, Jakarta – Hary Tanoesoedibjo, business magnate and chief patron of the People's Conscience Party (Hanura), said he would step down from his position in the party in the face of mounting criticism from within.

"It has been decided that Hary Tanoe will resign from Hanura because he has made promises to support to both candidates," party chairman and former army head Wiranto said.

He said Hary faced a conflict of interest after stating that he would support Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party candidate Prabowo. Hanura has pledged to support Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) candidate Joko Widodo.

In his capacity as Hanura's head election strategist, Hary faced criticism for his handling of the April 9 legislative elections, in which the party fared poorly, securing only 17 seats in the House of Representatives.

"It's way off our target of 5.5 percent, or 28 seats. Hary even promised that we would get 120 seats," Hanura deputy secretary general Kirstiawanto told the Jakarta Globe in April.

Previous reports indicated that Hary and Wiranto were at odds over the decision to form a coalition with PDI-P.

Analysts said that the PDI-P coalition would pose special difficulties for Hary because of his previous public disagreements with National Democrat Party (NasDem) aligned media rival Surya Paloh. NasDem is also part of the PDI-P coalition.

Joko's running mate, former vice president Jusuf Kalla, said he supported Hary's choice. "We should appreciate him, as a businessman it is good that he made such a decision," Kalla said Tuesday.

In February, Hary's MNC media group was sanctioned for a pro-Hanura bias under Indonesian equal time laws.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/hary-tanoe-resigns-hanura/