Akbar ready to face contenders at party congress

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Seasoned politician Akbar Tandjung said on Tuesday that he was ready to face any challenger in the upcoming Golkar National Congress to elect the leader of the country's largest political party.

Speaking in his wife's hometown of Surakarta, Central Java, Akbar said he was prepared to lead the party for another five- year term.

"I'm ready to retain the leadership as there are a lot of duties that I didn't finish in the last five years," Akbar, former House of Representatives speaker, was quoted as saying by Antara.

Golkar, which won the April 5 general election with 129 of 550 House seats, will hold a congress to elect new party leaders next month.

So far, only Golkar executive Marwah Daud Ibrahim has expressed an intention to challenge Abkar at the congress.

"My focus of attention in the next five years will be to build and consolidate the party. I am not thinking of running for president," Akbar said.

Experts have suggested that should Akbar retain the Golkar leadership, he would likely run for the presidency in 2009.

Golkar nominated former military chief Gen. Wiranto in the July 5 presidential election, and backed Megawati Soekarnoputri in the Sept. 20 runoff.

Akbar has been widely credited for consolidating Golkar amid public demands for its dissolution for supporting former president Soeharto for more than three decades.

Under his leadership, Golkar won the 2004 general election after slipping to second place behind the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) in the 1999 elections.

Golkar's five-day congress is slated to start on Dec. 15.

Akbar said that his priority after the congress would be to ensure that Golkar members won the direct elections of regional leaders across the country, which will begin in June next year.

Commenting on his ongoing dispute with fellow Golkar politician Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Fahmi Idris, Akbar said he was ready to reconcile with him.

"He can always come back to the party if he admits that he violated party policy. Such a statement is important," he said.

Fahmi and several other Golkar members were dismissed from the party for disregarding the party's leaders instruction to support Megawati Soekarnoputri in the presidential election runoff on Sept. 20.

Fahmi instead supported Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who won the election.

Akbar said he had appointed other respected members of the party, including Aulia Rachman, Fredy Latuconsina and current House Speaker Agung Laksono, to facilitate reconciliation with Fahmi and the others.