Antara, Jakarta – The National Awakening Party (PKB) is yet to decide whether it will form a coalition with the upcoming government or become the opposition.
In the 2024 presidential election, PKB Chairman Muhaimin Iskandar ran as the vice-presidential candidate alongside Anies Baswedan. Despite being considered an opposition to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration during the election, PKB is currently part of Jokowi's government.
The dual role of PKB, both as opposition contenders and members of the ruling government, has raised questions about the party's future strategies and potential political alignments.
"Up until now, the PKB Central Executive Board has not decided on any steps regarding coalition or anything else," Cucun Ahmad Sjamsurijal, Chairman of the PKB Faction in the House of Representatives, said on Sunday.
Sjamsurijal said the election is not over yet, as the vote tally is still ongoing. He mentioned that the party is focused on overseeing the national and regional vote tally process. As of Monday, Anies and Muhaimin have secured only 24 percent of the votes, significantly trailing behind Prabowo Subianto and his running mate Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Jokowi's eldest son, who garnered 58 percent.
"There have been no discussions or talks with our coalition parties about decisions or any shifts until now," he said.
Out of the total votes counted from 55 percent of polling stations (TPS) across Indonesia in the election, PKB holds the fourth-highest number of votes with 10.9 percent. This places PKB behind PDI-P at 15.68 percent, Golkar at 14.1 percent, and Gerindra at 12.234 percent.
Sjamsurijal revealed that any decisions regarding the party's stance would first be discussed internally. Additionally, consultations with Anies' campaign team would take place, but there have been no discussions in that direction. He said one determining factor in whether PKB will assume an opposition stance is its track record during its time in government.
Currently, PKB has three ministers in the government, namely Yaqut Cholil Qoumas as the Religious Affairs Minister, Ida Fauziyah as the Manpower Minister, and Abdul Halim Iskandar as the Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration Minister.
Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/news/pkb-considers-coalition-or-opposition-options-post2024-electio