PKB to support Wiranto if Gus Dur fails to make lineup<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta\/Surabaya<\/p>\n
The National Awakening Party (PKB) looks certain to throw its
\nsupport behind Golkar presidential candidate Gen. (ret) Wiranto
\nafter the General Elections Commission (KPU) declared its own
\ncandidate, Abdurrahman \"Gus Dur\" Wahid, ineligible to stand.<\/p>\n
PKB chairman Alwi Shihab said the policy was in line with the
\ndecision of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) senior clerics who preferred
\nWiranto as the PKB's alternative presidential candidate.<\/p>\n
\"We will follow the clerics' suggestion and will support
\nWiranto should Gus Dur fail to contest the presidential
\nelection,\" Alwi told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Wiranto has named Gus Dur's brother Solahuddin Wahid as his
\nrunning mate.<\/p>\n
Solahuddin is the deputy chairman of NU, the organization that
\nfounded the PKB and the largest Muslim organization in the
\ncountry.<\/p>\n
Alwi said the PKB would formalize its support for Wiranto
\nafter the KPU publicly announced the eligible candidates for the
\npresidential election on May 22.<\/p>\n
\"We will only announce our decision after the KPU finally
\ndecides on the fate of Gus Dur,\" Alwi, a former foreign minister,
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The KPU decision to disqualify Gus Dur, whose vision is
\nimpaired, on health grounds was been leaked to the media on
\nFriday. Gus Dur, who was dismissed as president in 2001,
\nostensibly for incompetence, has threatened to sue the commission
\nfor thwarting his comeback bid.<\/p>\n
Gus Dur has approved his brother's nomination as Golkar's vice
\npresidential candidate, but asserted that the PKB would not vote
\nfor the rival party despite his previous meetings with Wiranto.<\/p>\n
The KPU required all presidential candidates to pass medical
\ntests, including an eye examination.<\/p>\n
The PKB's East Java chapter leader Choirul Anam said that all
\nregional branches of the party in the province were ready to
\nsupport the duo of Wiranto and Solahuddin should Gus Dur be
\ndeclared ineligible to stand.<\/p>\n
\"But, the decision must wait until there is a formal decision
\non Gus Dur's fate. We are prepared to support the pairing
\n(Wiranto and Solahuddin),\" Choirul said.<\/p>\n
He said the decision had been endorsed by most NU clerics in
\nEast Java, the PKB stronghold.<\/p>\n
\"Gus Dur's chances look slim now, but Solahuddin has a better
\nchance of winning,\" Choirul said.<\/p>\n
Solahuddin is not the only NU leader who has announced his
\nintention to contest the July 5 election. NU top leader Hasyim
\nMuzadi will also participate in the race as the running mate of
\nthe Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle's (PDI-P)
\npresidential candidate Megawati Soekarnoputri.<\/p>\n
The fight to win NU support is continuing with Megawati and
\nHasyim intensifying their approaches to the clerics.<\/p>\n
A member of the Megawati reelection center, Hermawan Sulistyo,
\nsaid Hasyim as NU chairman was seen as serving as a moral
\nguardian for Megawati should she win.<\/p>\n
\"We are counting on him not because of how many votes he can
\nbring in, but rather for his image as a moral guardian for the
\nnext government,\" Hermawan, who is also a political analyst, told
\nthe Post on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the leader of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS),
\nHidayat Nurwahid, said on Sunday that his party would soon issue
\na recommendation as to which presidential candidate its members
\nshould vote for in the July 5 election.<\/p>\n
\"We will issue the recommendation before the start of the
\npresidential election campaign,\" Hidayat told reporters on the
\nsidelines of a rally condemning the U.S. occupation of Iraq.<\/p>\n
The campaign will run from June 1 to June 30.<\/p>\n
Hidayat said the recommendation could not be revealed now as
\nthe KPU had yet to announce the eligible candidates for the
\npresidential election.<\/p>\n
The PKS, which came seventh in the April 5 legislative
\nelection, has decided not to contest the presidential election
\nbut vowed to take on the role of an opposition in the future
\nHouse.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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