Nurcholish exit a severe blow for Golkar<\/p>\n
A'an Suryana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Golkar party's popularity has been at stake following the
\nwithdrawal of noted Muslim intellectual Nurcholish Madjid,
\npopularly known as Cak Nur, from the party's presidential race,
\nsay political observers.<\/p>\n
Political observer and senior researcher at the Centre for
\nStrategic and International Studies (CSIS) J. Kristiadi told The
\nJakarta Post here on Thursday that Nurcholish's decision to quit
\nGolkar for his presidential bid was a big loss for the party,
\nwhich has been struggling to restore its tainted image since
\n1998.<\/p>\n
"To the public, it (Nurcholish's withdrawal) is a confirmation
\nthat the convention was merely a ploy," he said.<\/p>\n
Nurcholish announced his decision on Wednesday a few hours
\nafter Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung had his aides pick up a
\nregistration form for the party convention, a move that indicated
\nhe intended to contend the first-ever direct presidential
\nelection next year.<\/p>\n
Golkar is scheduled to hold its convention in February to
\nselect its presidential candidate. A number of party figures,
\nincluding Akbar, have registered for the convention.<\/p>\n
"Faced with Nurcholish's withdrawal, Golkar has lost its
\nchance to repair its badly tarnished public image," said Arbi
\nSanit of the University of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Kristiadi appreciated Nurcholish's move as being the correct
\none to make. "If he had not withdrawn immediately from the
\nconvention, he would have been cut out (of the running) by Golkar
\nas part of its political trickery," he said.<\/p>\n
Kristiadi said that Akbar's participation in the convention
\nwas proof that Golkar had merely used Nurcholish to try and
\nimprove its tainted image, and Golkar was not sincere in
\nsupporting Nurcholish.<\/p>\n
He said that it was impossible for Nurcholish to win the
\npresidential race, as Akbar was supported by the majority of
\nGolkar chapters.<\/p>\n
Golkar has a reputation of being the political bandwagon of
\nformer president Soeharto's 32-year authoritarian and corrupt New
\nOrder regime.<\/p>\n
"Nurcholish should have known from the beginning that it is
\nimpossible for Golkar and Akbar, who has been building the party
\nfor years, to render power to outsiders who will fight for
\noutsiders (if the party wins the elections)," said Kristiadi.<\/p>\n
Akbar claimed that Nurcholish's withdrawal from Golkar's
\npresidential bid would not affect the convention, as it had been
\norganized to run transparently and fairly.<\/p>\n
"Everybody is free to join the convention," he said, adding,
\nhowever, that he regretted Cak Nur's departure.<\/p>\n
Many Golkar figures have frequently called on the party not to
\nsupport Akbar's presidential aspirations, for the sake of the
\nparty.<\/p>\n
Akbar has been sentenced three years' imprisonment for his
\ninvolvement in a Rp 40 billion graft case. He is free pending a
\nSupreme Court decision on his second appeal; his first appeal to
\nthe High Court was turned down.<\/p>\n
Although the Presidential Election Law permits those with a
\nmaximum five-year sentence to run, the verdict is actually a
\npolitical hindrance for Akbar's presidential bid.<\/p>\n
Former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, founder and
\nchairman of the board of the National Awakening Party (PKB),
\npraised Nurcholish's move, saying that the scholar had maintained
\nhis role as "the moral guru of the nation."<\/p>\n
"Nurcholish has taught us how to play high politics, while
\nstill maintaining credibility and morality in building our
\ndemocracy," said Gus Dur.<\/p>\n
Nurcholish said that despite his decision, he was still
\nconsidering the presidency through other political parties.<\/p>\n
He said several political figures and at least five political
\nparties had expressed their interest in supporting him for the
\npresidency.<\/p>\n
Political observer Indria Samego suggested Nurcholish pick
\nreformist parties as his political vehicle, such as the Ryaas
\nRasyid-led Democratic Nationalist Party (PDK) or the Sjahrir-led
\nNew Indonesia Alliance Party (PIB).<\/p>\n
"Choosing one of the reformist parties will improve Cak Nur's
\npopularity among the people," he said.<\/p>",
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