Yustinus Paat, Jakarta – The Democratic Party expressed strong resentment on Thursday, accusing coalition partners of treachery for choosing Muhaimin Iskandar as Anies Baswedan's running mate in the upcoming 2024 presidential election.

Adding to the discontent, Anies did not personally inform coalition members about this sudden decision. Instead, he dispatched an aide to communicate on his behalf.

While Anies has yet to confirm this allegation, Teuku Riefky Harsya, the Secretary-General of the Democratic Party, asserted that the decision to pair Anies with the National Awakening Party (PKB) chairman was made on Tuesday without the knowledge of other coalition members.

Originally, the PKB was not part of the three-party coalition that endorsed Anies for the 2024 election. The initial coalition consisted of the Democratic Party, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), and the National Democratic Party (Nasdem).

According to Teuku, Surya Paloh, the Chairman of Nasdem, made the decision to unite Anies with Muhaimin on Tuesday. Surya later invited Anies that same evening to inform him of the decision.

"However, a day later, on August 30, Anies failed to directly communicate with the leaders of the PKS and the Democratic Party regarding this crucial matter. Instead, he delegated the task to [former energy minister] Sudirman Said," Teuku stated.

Teuku accused both Anies and Surya of violating the agreement established among the original coalition members by making this unilateral decision without first consulting the other two partners.

Teuku further claimed that Anies had previously agreed to choose Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, the Chairman of the Democratic Party, as his running mate.

As a consequence of these unforeseen events, the Democratic Party promptly instructed the removal of posters, banners, and other campaign materials featuring Agus and Anies, revealed another party executive.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/news/democratic-party-outraged-as-anies-picks-muhaimin-as-running-mat