Matori's dismissal from PKB seen as 'emotional move'

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The dismissal of Matori Abdul Djalil from the National Awakening Party (PKB) was seen by his supporters as unlawful and an "emotional move" taken by his rival, Alwi Shihab.

"No one can dismiss any party member except the party's national congress, which is the highest forum of the party," Matori's PKB secretary-general Abdul Khalid Ahmad told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

On Thursday, a lawyer from PKB under Alwi's leadership announced Matori's dismissal from the party as he had ignored requests to clarify his presence at the impeachment process against then president Abdurrahman Wahid in July.

Abdurrahman is the party's chief of the board of patrons.

Abdurrahman replaced MatorI with Alwi Shihab, the former foreign minister. But Matori has insisted that he is still the legitimate PKB chairman.

Since then, there has been a dual leadership in the PKB.

Matori, who is now minister of defense, was accused of disloyalty, as he had defied the party's policy not to attend the impeachment process at the People's Consultative Assembly Special Session last July.

"Matori should be given an opportunity to explain his behavior at the next party congress. It is up to congress participants whether to accept or reject Matori's explanation," Khalid asserted.

Matori's camp held the PKB's national working meeting from Nov. 11 to Nov. 13, and it was attended by representatives from 24 provincial chapters. The meeting, among other things, decided to resolve various party problems at an extraordinary congress, to be held around March next year.

According to Khalid, Matori's dismissal from the party, as well as from his position as party chairman, would be discussed at the extraordinary congress.

He claimed the chief of the party's board of patrons had no right to unseat Matori from the party's leadership, which was decided at the party's national congress.

"Both the PKB chairman and PKB chief patron are appointed by the party's national congress; therefore the chief of the board of patrons has no right to fire the PKB chairman," said Khalid.