Hasyim prefers Mega to Wiranto<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta<\/p>\n
After weeks of frantic searching for a running mate for the
\npresidential election, President Megawati Soekarnoputri of the
\nIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) finally picked
\nHasyim Muzadi of the Nahdlatul Ulama Muslim organization on
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
While her choice had been widely expected, critics were
\nnevertheless skeptical about the pair's chances in the July 5
\nelection.<\/p>\n
At least seven parties are eligible to put forward candidates
\nin the election. They have a week to register their presidential
\nand vice presidential lineups beginning Thursday.<\/p>\n
Pointing to a lack of solid support from the NU, analyst
\nAzyumardi Azra said that Hasyim might not be able to bring a lot
\nof votes Megawati's way.<\/p>\n
\"It is doubtful that the pairing will fire up the voters as
\nthere are many other NU leaders taking part in the presidential
\nrace,\" Azyumardi told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Besides Hasyim, he said, other NU figures such as former
\nsenior minister Jusuf Kalla, former president Abdurrahman \"Gus
\nDur\" Wahid's brother Solahuddin Wahid and the United Development
\nParty (PPP)'s chairman Hamzah Haz were also taking part in the
\npresidential race.<\/p>\n
\"Hasyim is the most unpopular of these, and I believe that
\nmany NU votes also went to the Golkar Party. So it does not
\nreally mean much to have Hasyim as your vice presidential
\ncandidate,\" the Muslim scholar added.<\/p>\n
Another Muslim scholar, Nurcholis \"Cak Nur\" Madjid, also
\ncriticized Hasyim's decision, and asked him to resign from his
\nposition in the NU to avoid a possible rift among the
\norganization's members.<\/p>\n
Cak Nur, a classmate of Hasyim while studying at the famous
\nGontor Islamic boarding school in the East Java town of Ponorogo,
\nsaid that Hasyim had failed to uphold the commitment to stay away
\nfrom practical politics made during the NU's historic national
\nmeeting in Situbondo in the 1980s.<\/p>\n
\"The NU agreed to return to its khittah (principles) and stay
\naway from practical politics. I thought Hasyim -- I must stress
\nhere that he is my friend -- would abide by the commitment, but I
\nwas wrong,\" Cak Nur said.<\/p>\n
\"As chairman of the organization, Hasyim should not utilize
\nthe NU as a political vehicle as it is not a political party. He
\nshould resign from his position before declaring his readiness to
\nrun in the election, otherwise he will tarnish the credibility of
\nthe organization\" he added.<\/p>\n
Hasyim had also being courted by Golkar to team up with
\npresidential candidate Gen. (ret) Wiranto, but he turned down the
\noffer saying: \"Thank you Golkar, but I cannot accept two offers.\"<\/p>\n
His candidacy looks set to further split the NU as Gus Dur,
\nstill the most influential NU leader, has refused to endorse
\nHasyim, while some senior clerics have asked Hasyim to stay away
\nfrom politics.<\/p>\n
The announcement was made with great fanfare on Thursday at
\nthe Proclamation Monument in Central Jakarta, with statues of the
\ncountry's founding fathers, Soekarno and Hatta, featuring
\nprominently in the background.<\/p>\n
\"This is the beginning of the end of the division between
\ntraditional Muslims and modernist Muslims. The getting together
\nof Megawati and myself is not meant just to establish a strong
\ngovernment, but also ensure a strong civil society,\" Hasyim said
\nin his speech.<\/p>\n
The PDI-P is a nationalist, secular party, while the NU is the
\ncountry's largest Muslim-based organization with 40 million
\nsupporters.<\/p>\n
Megawati expressed the hope that the pair could fulfill the
\npublic's desire for good leadership following the election.<\/p>\n
\"We will officially register ourselves with the General
\nElections Commission (KPU) and undergo our medical examinations
\nas required by law before entering the race,\" Mega said during
\nthe announcement.<\/p>\n
She also thanked current vice president Hamzah Haz for his
\nsupport for the choice of Hasyim as her running mate.<\/p>\n
Political analyst Ikrar Nusa Bhakti from the Indonesian
\nInstitute of Sciences (LIPI) said that the duo could attract a
\nsignificant vote in the upcoming election.<\/p>\n
\"Without being convinced that Hasyim would bring in the votes,
\nMegawati would not have selected him as her running mate,\" Ikrar
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Megawati and Hasyim were accompanied by family members during
\nthe announcement and went straight to the East Java town of
\nBlitar to visit the grave of Megawati's father, the country's
\nfirst president, Soekarno. They are also slated to visit senior
\nNU clerics in Jombang, East Java, on Friday.<\/p>\n
The event was attended by Cabinet ministers, foreign
\nambassadors and representatives from non-governmental
\norganizations.<\/p>",
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