Gus Hans Urges AHWA to Remain Objective in PBNU Chairperson Election

The Vice Rector of Universitas Pesantren Tinggi Darul Ulum (Unipdu) Jombang, H.M. Zahrul Azhar As’ad, also known as Gus Hans, hopes that the election of the General Chairperson of the Nahdlatul Ulama (PBN_NU) will be conducted without intervention.

This message is specifically directed to the kiai members of the Ahlul Halli wal Aqdi (AHWA), who are expected to choose the chairperson candidate independently. This hope follows the decision of the 35th NU Muktamar, which agreed to change the mechanism for electing the general chairperson through a voting process.

“I hope that the AHWA can truly choose without any intervention and use their inner conscience,” said Gus Hans in a statement in Jombang on Sunday (30/8), as reported by Antara.

The change in the election mechanism was approved by the majority of the muktamirin. Out of a total of 552 muktamirin, 401 votes supported the change in the PBNU General Chairperson election mechanism, while 150 votes chose to maintain the old mechanism. One other vote was recorded as an abstention or invalid.

With these results, the option to change the mechanism garnered approximately 73 per cent of the votes, while the option to maintain the old mechanism received only about 27 per cent.

According to Gus Hans, the new mechanism must still be accompanied by an objective attitude from the AHWA kiai. He believes that the kiai need to consider the candidates’ track records, including who has been a source of problems within the organisation and who is capable of resolving them.

“So that the kiai can make their choice without any remaining residue from previous conflicts,” said Gus Hans, who previously ran alongside former Social Affairs Minister Tri Rismaharini as a potential candidate for East Java Vice Governor in the 2024 East Java Regional Election.

Gus Hans also assessed that all candidates still have an equal opportunity to be elected. At this stage, he noted that no candidate can claim to be the strongest contender, as communication with the AHWA kiai is still ongoing.

“Everything is still open. It is not yet possible to claim who is the strongest. It all depends on last-minute communication with the kiai in the AHWA,” said Gus Hans.

Gus Hans warned that the change in the election system does not automatically eliminate the possibility of money politics or intimidation, though he emphasised that such concerns remain speculative.

“We are talking about allegations in this process. These allegations could potentially happen or may have already occurred,” he said.

He even raised the possibility that the change in mechanism might be the result of conditioning by certain parties. “With this change in the system, it is possible that this is also the result of conditioning that was not free of charge from parties who believe they have the potential to win using this system,” he remarked.

However, he declined to label it as manipulation, preferring the term ‘conditioning.’

“I do not dare to say that this is part of manipulation, no, but it is more accurately the result of conditioning,” said Gus Hans.