Ina Parlina, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's government regulations in lieu of law (Perppu), which bring back direct elections of regional heads, will likely face strong opposition when the new lawmakers in the House of Representatives start their deliberations on the legislation in January next year, three months after Yudhoyono leaves office.

The House, which kicked off its first session on Wednesday, has yet to schedule a meeting to discuss the government's proposal on the Perppu. The current sitting session for the new batch of lawmakers will wrap up in November.

Politicians from the Red-and-White Coalition, which nominated defeated presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto, said the Perppu would only be discussed in the next sitting session, which is likely to start in early January next year.

"We will first study it to determine if it meets the 'emergency' requirement. Until now, we have yet to receive the document. So, of course, I believe it will only be discussed in the next seating session," said Fadli Zon, the newly inaugurated deputy speaker of the House.

The Perppu must first be endorsed by the House before it can take effect, as stipulated by article 22 of the Constitution.

The Perppu has been met with a mixed response by politicians of the Golkar Party, which currently holds 91 seats in the House, the second-largest political faction after the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the winner of the legislative election.

Golkar is slated to make an official announcement regarding the Perppu on Monday. "No need to rush; we must first wrap up the current sitting session and wait for the inauguration of the president-elect [Jokowi]," Golkar Party executive and lawmaker Fadel Muhammad said.

Golkar's deputy chairman Agung Laksono, meanwhile, said that his party "kept pushing for a direct-election mechanism".

Hazrul Azwar, a politician from the United Development Party (PPP), one of the parties in the Red-and-White Coalition, said that his party rejected the Perppu and would maintain that stance in the sessions deliberating the regulations. Members of Red-and-White Coalition will likely block endorsement of Perppu Yudhoyono nevertheless expects House to endorse the regulation

Despite Yudhoyono's promise to muster all his strength to push the House into accepting the Perppu, many are skeptical that he will succeed in bringing back direct elections, as the majority of seats in the new House are controlled by the Red-and-White Coalition, which supports the representative-based local election mechanism.

"The Red-and-White Coalition might use the deliberations over the Perppu as a reason to hit him [Jokowi] back hard. They will use just about anything to defeat Jokowi," Arie Sudjito, a political analyst from Gadjah Mada University, said on Friday.

During a press conference on Thursday, Yudhoyono hinted, however, that some parties, even in the Red-and-White Coalition, could have a change of heart.

"From the political communication I had with [some] political parties and the House, I understand that those who opted for a change in the direct election system toward a representative-base [system] are beginning to understand."

Yudhoyono said that the Perppu provided "fundamental improvements that the government wants", while at the same time, "it could accommodate the concerns of those who think that the election through DPRD [regional legislative councils] is better".

Yudhoyono has also said he was ready for the fallout from issuing the Perppu. "I know this Perppu issuance carries a political risk because it needs to be endorsed by the House, but I have to fight for democracy along with the people," he said.

Newly elected House Deputy Speaker Agus Hermanto of the Democratic Party said his party would work hard for the endorsement of the Perppu in the House.

He said that deliberations on the Perppu had been put on the top of the list of the House's legislative agenda. "Everything has a process. We will start the deliberations as soon as possible," Agus said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/10/04/opposition-expected-against-perppu.html