PKS to reassess support for government<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) is set to announce on
\nSunday whether it will continue supporting the current government
\nin response to growing calls from the party's grassroots to
\nwithdraw its backing.<\/p>\n
The board of patrons of the Islamic-oriented party began a
\ntwo-day meeting in Jakarta on Saturday to discuss this strategic
\nissue, as well as a number of other matters.<\/p>\n
The meeting comes ahead of an expected announcement of a
\nCabinet reshuffle by Susilo.<\/p>\n
Hilmi Aminuddin, who chairs the PKS central board of patrons,
\nconfirmed that the meeting would discuss a possible coalition
\nwith other political groups to support the Susilo government.<\/p>\n
\"It's up to the participants at the meeting to decide. We will
\nnot interfere,\" he told journalists on the sidelines of the
\nclosed-door meeting, which is being attended by at least 98
\nmembers of PKS advisory boards from across the country.<\/p>\n
Also in attendance were PKS chairman Tifatul Sembiring,
\nsecretary-general Anis Matta, and former PKS chairmen Hidayat
\nNur Wahid, who is currently the People's Consultative Assembly
\n(MPR) speaker, and Nur Mahmudi Ismail, the mayor-elect of Depok,
\nWest Java.<\/p>\n
The PKS had been attracting growing public attention for its
\nproclaimed commitment to eradicating corruption.<\/p>\n
Hilmi said his party would not seek more seats in the Cabinet
\nwhen Susilo reshuffled it, but stressed that the President would
\nhave to \"fulfill the political contract\" he made with the party
\nprior to the 2004 presidential election.<\/p>\n
\"Under this political contract, the PKS was to be given four
\nministerial posts. It was agreed and signed before the
\npresidential election. But so far we have only got three seats in
\nthe Cabinet,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Minister of Agriculture Anton Apriyantono, Minister of Public
\nHousing Muhammad Yusuf Ansyari and State Minister of Youth and
\nSports Affairs Adhyaksa Dault are current Cabinet members from a
\nPKS background.<\/p>\n
The party was reportedly seeking to have another of its
\nsupporters -- either former forestry minister Soeripto or lawyer
\nArief T. Surawidjaja -- appointed as the new Attorney General to
\nreplace the non-partisan Abdul Rahman Saleh.<\/p>\n
Hilmi said he had no idea whether the PKS would maintain or
\nwithdraw its support for the government.<\/p>\n
\"We have joined the government in the interests of the people.
\nWe will evaluate whether their interests are being served by our
\nposition,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Two surveys recently conducted by the PKS in Jakarta and
\nYogyakarta show that most of its supporters in the two provinces
\nwant the party to withdraw its backing for the government.<\/p>\n
One of the main reasons given was the steep increases in
\nfuel prices, which have increased hardship amid the current
\neconomic difficulties.<\/p>\n
The two-day meeting is also set to discuss the PKS manifestos
\nfor the 2009 general and presidential elections. The party, which
\ntook 7 percent of the vote in the 2004 legislative election, is
\naiming for 22 million vote, or 20 percent of the total vote, in
\n2009.<\/p>\n
Earlier on Friday, the Golkar Party, led by Vice President
\nJusuf Kalla, declared its loyalty to the government while at the
\nsame time seeking more Cabinet seats in the looming reshuffle.
\nGolkar currently has only two Cabinet members -- chief economics
\nminister Aburizal Bakrie and manpower minister Fahmi Idris.<\/p>",
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