Akbar eyes Army chief for VP<\/p>\n
Kurniawan Hari and Fitri Wulandari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Golkar leader Akbar Tandjung is considering naming military chief
\nGen. Endriartono Sutarto as his running mate in the July 5
\nelection after talks with regional party leaders -- but he's not
\nshowing his hand yet.<\/p>\n
\"Yes, his name (Endriartono) has come to mind. But, let's wait
\nfor the convention result,\" Akbar said here on Monday.<\/p>\n
Akbar's announcement follows the departure of noted Golkar
\nparty member and former presidential candidate Jusuf Kalla, who
\nresigned from his cabinet post on Monday to become Susilo Bambang
\nYudhoyono's vice presidential candidate.<\/p>\n
Golkar, the political machine of former president Soeharto,
\nwill hold a convention on Tuesday (today) to elect the party's
\ncandidate in the country's first ever direct presidential
\nelection on July 5.<\/p>\n
Five aspirants -- Akbar Tandjung; former TNI chief Gen. (ret)
\nWiranto; media magnate Surya Paloh; businessman Aburizal Bakrie;
\nand former commander of the Army's Strategic Reserve Command
\n(Kostrad) Lt. Gen. Prabowo Subianto -- are competing for the
\nparty's endorsement of their presidential bids.<\/p>\n
Akbar said the name of Endriartono, the current TNI chief, was
\nalso floated during his meeting with leaders of 15 Golkar
\nregental branches and provincial chapters on Sunday evening.<\/p>\n
\"Some regional leaders asked me to name Endriartono to be my
\nrunning mate. Of course, I'm seriously considering that,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
There was no comment from Endriartono on whether he would take
\nthe offer. He has said on several occasions the military must
\nstay neutral and keep its distance from politics.<\/p>\n
Akbar is not the only presidential hopeful who is considering
\nsomeone with a military background as a running mate. Amien Rais,
\nleader of the National Mandate Party (PAN), has often raised
\nsimilar proposals.<\/p>\n
Akbar said a potential pair-up with Endriartono could pose a
\nchallenge to the Susilo-Jusuf team.<\/p>\n
Susilo, himself a retired Army general, is the presidential
\ncandidate of the newly established Democrat Party.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Kalla officially tendered his resignation as
\ncoordinating minister for the people's welfare in President
\nMegawati Soekarnoputri's Gotong Royong Cabinet on Monday.<\/p>\n
\"I thanked (the President) for entrusting the task to me. I
\napologized that I had to resign from the Cabinet to run for the
\nvice presidential post,\" he said here on Monday.<\/p>\n
Kalla said Megawati made little comment on his resignation
\nbut thanked him for carrying out his task dutifully.<\/p>\n
\"She only smiled (on my resignation),\" he said.<\/p>\n
Kalla said Megawati's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
\n(PDI-P) had lobbied him to be her running mate but he chose to
\nrun alongside Susilo, the former coordinating minister for
\npolitical and security affairs. Susilo resigned from his post in
\nearly March.<\/p>\n
\"There was no formal talk, only lobbying through my
\ncolleagues,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Asked if he would mobilize Golkar supporters in East
\nIndonesia, Kalla, a successful businessman from Makassar, South
\nSulawesi, refused to comment.<\/p>\n
\"Well, it's a campaign.\" he quipped.<\/p>\n
Susilo and Kalla have topped surveys on presidential and vice
\npresidential choices respectively, but doubt remains about their
\nchances, as neither have solid political machinery behind them to
\nsupport their bids.<\/p>\n
Kalla did not say who would replace him in Cabinet. The
\nMinister for National Education, Malik Fadjar, has been touted by
\nsome pundits.<\/p>\n
\"It is the prerogative of the President,\" Kalla said.<\/p>\n
State Secretary Bambang Kesowo did not confirm if Malik Fadjar
\nwould be ad interim minister.<\/p>\n
He said his office was preparing a presidential decree to
\naccept Kalla's resignation and another to appoint his
\nreplacement.<\/p>\n
The decree would not be made public yet, Bambang said.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/akbar-eyes-army-chief-for-vp-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }