Ahmad Ali: I Did Not Resign, but Was Expelled from NasDem
The Daily Chair of the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI), Ahmad Ali, stated that he never resigned from the NasDem Party. He said NasDem expelled him after its 2024 congress decided that the former NasDem faction leader in the DPR was not included in the party’s leadership ranks.
Ali claimed he was a cadre trusted by NasDem Chairman Surya Paloh to serve as vice chairman. “I did not leave, but was expelled from NasDem,” Ali told Tempo on Sunday, 21 June 2026. He made the statement to explain the real reason for his move to PSI.
The politician from Central Sulawesi suspects his expulsion was due to his refusal to comply with a party request regarding a political dowry. “I am a thousand percent sure,” he said. However, Ali declined to reveal further details about the party’s request.
According to Ali, he was a cadre trusted by Surya Paloh. Ali claimed to have assisted with party funding, estimating the amount could have built the NasDem Tower in Gondangdia, Central Jakarta. One example was the ‘Cadre Alert Rally’ on 16 July 2023, part of Surya Paloh’s birthday celebration. “I paid for all of that,” he said.
Tempo contacted NasDem Secretary-General Hermawi Taslim and Treasurer-General Ahmad Sahroni for comment on Ali’s statement. Neither Hermawi nor Sahroni had responded by Sunday evening, 21 June 2026.
Surya Paloh has repeatedly affirmed his party’s commitment to practising politics without dowries. In Surabaya on 21 April 2026, he stated that consistently practising politics without dowries is not easy. “When we carry it out with full awareness and consistency, it will certainly yield good results,” he said, as quoted from Metro TV’s YouTube channel.
During the 2024 election campaign, Surya also emphasised that politics without dowries is an implementation of NasDem’s ideas and values. He acknowledged that many people still doubt a party can implement politics without dowries. “The public will give support if it is done consistently over time,” Surya said in May 2023.