Amien OKs party for Muhammadiyah

YOGYAKARTA: The National Mandate Party (PAN) chairman Amien Rais said on Saturday he would let Muhammadiyah followers build their own political party if they perceived that PAN had failed to accommodate their aspirations.

"I think it is a good idea to establish a new party. But it should not be just a discourse but real action," said Amien, who is a former chairman of Muhammadiyah.

The former People's Consultative Assembly's speaker, however, denied allegations that PAN has failed to live up to Muhammadiyah supporters' demands.

"The most important thing is PAN stays an open party as Islam teaches us to protect everybody regardless of ethnicity or race," he said. --JP