PDI Perjuangan excludes critics from candidate selection<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) has
\nexcluded outspoken party members from its list of legislative
\ncandidates for the 2004 elections.<\/p>\n
Staunch critics of the party such as Meilono Suwondo, Arifin
\nPanigoro and Haryanto Taslam, all current members of the House of
\nRepresentative, have been left off the list, which will be signed
\nby chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri on Dec. 7 before being
\nsubmitted to the General Elections Commission.<\/p>\n
"We did not scrap them, but, in the case of Arifin and
\nMeilono, they declined renomination," the party's deputy
\nchairman, Roy B.B. Janis, said on Friday.<\/p>\n
Speaking after a party meeting to review the list of
\ncandidates, Roy said the central executive board of the party had
\nthe authority to list or remove from the list any member.<\/p>\n
"We will only exercise our prerogative to add candidates, but
\nnot to drop them as we have to respect the aspirations of our
\nvoters," Roy added.<\/p>\n
He said the party's central board exercised it prerogative in
\nrenominating senior party member J.E. Sahetapy, despite an
\nabsence of public support.<\/p>\n
Arifin, Meilono, and Haryanto are known for their opposition
\nto party chairwoman Megawati, who is also the President.<\/p>\n
Haryanto was a staunch supporter of Megawati when she ran
\nafoul of president Soeharto during the New Order era. Haryanto
\nwas allegedly abducted by the military for his criticism of the
\ndictator.<\/p>\n
Meilono and Haryanto have recently expressed their
\ndisappointment with Megawati's performance as President. They
\nconsider her to have betrayed the reform movement by failing to
\ntake tough measures against corruption.<\/p>\n
Arifin, who is a deputy chairman of the party, has often
\nskipped the party's weekly meetings over the past seven months
\nand has refused to meet with Megawati.<\/p>\n
There have been suggestions by party leaders to dismiss the
\nthree or at least to reprimand them for their continuing
\ndefiance.<\/p>\n
Megawati, in her opening speech during the party's recent
\nnational meeting, slammed the acts of defiance and threatened to
\ndismiss any insubordinate party members.<\/p>\n
"I know that these men, who seem to be very outspoken in the
\nnewspapers and claim to defend the people's aspirations, have
\nfailed to win the support of their constituents," Megawati said
\nin the speech.<\/p>\n
Cracks within the party have deepened since Megawati assumed
\nthe presidency in July 2001, with many critics considering her to
\nhave made too many political compromises to maintain her
\npresidency.<\/p>\n
Noted PDI Perjuangan members such as Sophan Sophiaan and
\nIndira Damayanti Soegondo resigned from the House in an
\nexpression of their disappointment with Megawati's leadership.<\/p>\n
Senior party members Dimyati Hartono and Eros Djarot quit the
\nparty and established a new political party.<\/p>\n
On Friday, PDI Perjuangan's deputy secretary-general, Pramono
\nAnung Wibowo, defended the inclusion of Megawati's brother Guruh
\nSoekarnoputra and husband Taufik Kiemas on the list of
\nlegislative candidates, despite their poor attendance at the
\nHouse in their current term as legislators.<\/p>\n
"They enjoy the support of constituents and they were
\nnominated by more than one province. I don't think there is
\nanything wrong with their presence in the House," Pramono said.<\/p>\n
Megawati also decided to delay the finalization of the list,
\nwhich was scheduled to completed on Friday, until Dec. 7 to
\ncorrect and organize the names.<\/p>\n
"There are many people who were nominated by more than one
\nprovince, so we have to reorganize the list," Pramono said.<\/p>\n
The final list will include 660 names, he said.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pdi-perjuangan-excludes-critics-from-candidate-selection-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }