Akbar Tandjung's event-filled political career grinds to halt

Akbar Tandjung's event-filled political career grinds to halt

Kornelius Purba and M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Nusa Dua/Bali

The failure of Akbar Tandjung to retain his leadership of the
country's largest party, Golkar, on Sunday morning, made him the
last of four people publicly regarded as leaders who became
"victims" of the nation's early taste of democracy following the
departure of strongman Soeharto.

Along with Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, Megawati
Soekarnoputri, and Amien Rais, Akbar was highly regarded as a
leading figure in the era reformasi, despite his own credentials
as one of Soeharto's disciples. His three colleagues had fought
earlier to oust Soeharto, and Akbar joined them after the five-
star general's fall. Gus Dur lost his presidential seat in July
2001 -- less than two years after he won it -- due to his erratic
and confrontational maneuvers.

The then-vice president Megawati replaced him. Megawati was
regarded as a perfect symbol of resistance against Soeharto, and
her Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) won the
largest share of legislative seats in the 1999 general election.
Megawati lost to Gen. (ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the
country's first direct presidential election recently. Her party
earlier lost to Golkar in the April legislative election, mostly
because of people's disappointment in her. In the party's
congress in March next year, Megawati should brace for a fate not
unlike that of Akbar's.

Amien, who was the People's Consultative Assembly speaker for
five years until this October, and the most outspoken leader
against Soeharto, lost his last chance to lead the country in the
first round of the presidential election in April. Akbar himself
was highly applauded for his achievement in transforming Golkar
from Soeharto's political machine to a more democratic and modern
party. Just six years after Soeharto's fall, the party holds the
most seats in the House.

And for Susilo, Akbar's fall may prove very helpful in
creating a stronger government. With Golkar now under Vice
President Jusuf Kalla's control, he is pretty much assured of 128
more votes in the 550-strong House of Representatives. The
Nationhood Coalition, a group of political groups including
Golkar and the second biggest party, the PDI-P, has declared
itself as an opposition against Susilo's smaller People's
Coalition. It is hoped that Akbar's departure also means that
Susilo can more rapidly make good on his promises to improve the
lot of Indonesians.

What gave Kalla the edge over Akbar? And what will be the most
important agenda for Golkar in the next five years?

There are strong rumors among congress participants that money
played a crucial role in Kalla's victory. But, in the "eloquent"
words of Akbar, corruption is like a fart -- it is easily
detected by its smell, but no one can see it. Up until Friday, it
seemed that no one could defeat Akbar, as reflected by the
congress participants' thunderous applause at his address and a
documentary film depicting his dedication and hard work for the
party.

Kalla was even regarded by many as a traitor, because he
became Susilo's running mate in the presidential race without
Golkar's official approval, and he was nominated by Susilo's
Democratic Party.

On Friday evening, Kalla invited the participants to see him
in a separate hotel. The representatives of provincial and
regental chapters seemed cheerful after the meeting -- indeed,
one might have mistaken them for holidaymakers. However, on
Saturday morning, the presence of businesspeople around the
congress venue became more evident.

"Akbar asked us to listen to our hearts, but Kalla gives us
vitamins," said a participant from Sumatra. During this election
year, "vitamins" and "nutrition" have widely been used as
informal codewords for material gain, mainly cash.

But of course money is not the only factor. Power is also a
strong magnet. Akbar's camp continued to use cheap practices to
block Kalla's candidacy, honing in on his supposed betrayal of
the party, for instance.

Golkar has had power in its grip for many years, particularly
during the Soeharto era, and shows little interest in being an
opposition party. Golkar figures have controlled 22 of the
country's 33 provincial legislative councils and those of most
regencies, including the speakership. But, since 1999, the
nation's presidency has fallen into the hands of other parties.
Kalla is now the closest to the highest executive power; while
Akbar may never be able to satisfy his hunger for power.

As of next year, voters in 34 provinces and more than 400
regencies and municipalities will, for the first time, directly
elect their leaders. Golkar figures are among those eyeing
hundreds of lucrative positions.

Akbar's promise to win the presidential election in 2009 has
made little impression on the party's regional leaders. After
all, with Susilo in power for less than three months, 2009 seems
a long way off. They are more interested in regional leadership
seats. They need Kalla to use his position as vice president to
boost their chance in the forthcoming local races.

That was one reason why they were so forceful in demanding
that the congress outline comprehensive strategies to win the
regional elections.

Can Kalla effectively manage both his government and party
position? Although he has appointed Agung Laksono as his deputy,
Agung is also busy with his own agenda in the House. Already, it
has been suggested that the vice president's additional power
could trigger conflicts with the President, and Kalla may well
have gained the upper hand in the government's daily activities.

Kalla's new position may have brought with it a more stable
government, but will that also mean more effective and cleaner
governance?