Ahmad Ali Claims 'Political Dowry' Prompted His Exit from NasDem

Ketua Harian DPP PSI Ahmad Ali has revealed that his departure from the NasDem Party was triggered by a ‘political dowry’ demand during the 2024 presidential election process. He claimed he received improper treatment after failing to fulfil the request made by NasDem Chairman Surya Paloh at the time. “When the dowry was not met, I was treated inappropriately and unfairly. The presidential election process was initiated by me, and I was the only person mandated by the party to be responsible for it. The amount was enough to buy, to build NasDem Tower 2,” Ali said in the What the Fact Politics podcast with CNN Indonesia on Friday (19/6). He further stated that his exit from NasDem was more accurately described as being ‘discarded’ by the party under Surya Paloh’s leadership. Ali also highlighted that his position as Deputy Chairman of NasDem did not make it easy for him to secure a recommendation to run in the 2024 Central Sulawesi gubernatorial election. “Even to get a recommendation to run for governor, it was incredibly difficult,” he said. He criticised NasDem for publicly championing morality, values, and restoration, while the practice was otherwise. “So in the end, I thought I must no longer be here,” he concluded. Despite this, Ali stressed that his personal relationship with Surya Paloh remains untroubled, stating he greatly respects Paloh and considers him a mentor. “At NasDem, I learned about values, but in the end, those values were not consistently upheld. For me, there is no personal problem,” he said. Before joining PSI in September 2025, Ahmad Ali was a prominent NasDem figure, having joined the party in 2013. The Central Sulawesi politician began his career after being elected to the Morowali Regency DPRD for the 2009-2014 period from the Patriot Party. He moved to NasDem in 2013 and ran for the national parliament from the Central Sulawesi electoral district, securing a seat for the 2019-2024 period with 152,270 valid votes.