Jakarta – The National Mandate Party (PAN) has asserted that as part of the ruling coalition, it continues to support the President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo administration despite a call from party patron Amien Rais for a PAN politician to resign from his Cabinet post.

PAN central executive board (DPP) chairman Yandri Susanto said the party would not withdraw it politician from Jokowi's Cabinet because the authority to select ministers was the President's.

"[On ministerial seats] it's up to Pak Jokowi. The matter is in Pak Jokowi's hands," Yandri said as quoted by kompas.com on Monday evening.

Yandri went on to say that Amien made the suggestion in his role as honorary PAN council chairman. "It's normal to make suggestions. However, ministerial seats are the President's [prerogative]," he said.

PAN's only representative in the Cabinet is Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Minister Asman Abnur. Yandri said the party would leave it up to President Jokowi whether to replace the PAN politician.

On Sunday, Amien called on PAN, a mid-sized party that has 8.57 percent of legislative seats, to withdraw from the government coalition. He suggested Asman resign from his position as a minister in Jokowi's Cabinet.

PAN's position in the Cabinet recently came into question after it chose not to side with the coalition in a recent vote on several crucial issues in the newly passed Election Law. (afr/ebf)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2017/07/25/pan-refuses-to-withdraw-from-cabinet.html