Opposition alliance a challenge to Golkar
JAKARTA (JP): The newly set up alliance between three top opposition parties poses a direct challenge to the ruling Golkar party in the coming elections, a Golkar deputy chairman said on Tuesday.
"The joint effort has provided a new momentum to block Golkar's effort to obtain a reasonable percentage of votes to win the upcoming elections," Marzuki Darusman told The Jakarta Post.
Marzuki had earlier voiced disappointment at Golkar's decision to name a single presidential candidate, the incumbent B.J. Habibie, saying the nomination would have a negative effect on Golkar.
Leading opposition figures Amien Rais of the National Mandate Party (PAN), Abdurrahman Wahid of the National Awakening Party (PKB) and Megawati Soekarnoputri from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) announced an agreement early Tuesday to form a coalition to beat the "status quo force".
The parties had in the past expressed willingness to form an alliance.
Marzuki said the move was by no means new but "would certainly pose a direct challenge to Golkar". In fact, he said, the new alliance "may hinder support for Golkar".
It may even cause Golkar supporters to have second thoughts about the party's campaign for reform, he said.
Analysts have predicted dim prospects for the ruling party in the June elections since the fall of its former chief patron president Soeharto in May last year. They said Golkar's chance became even slimmer when the party last week named President B.J. Habibie as its sole presidential candidate.
Many people have been unhappy with Habibie's inability to prevent rampant violence in the country and his so far fruitless investigation into the alleged corruption of Soeharto, who was his former mentor during 32 years in power.
Legal experts and proreformists have accused Habibie and Attorney General Andi M. Ghalib of deliberate foot-dragging in the investigation.
"The fact that Habibie has been nominated (as sole presidential candidate) has made it easier for the opposition to (portray) Golkar as the status-quo force," Marzuki said.
Marzuki said the party therefore "will have to be serious in analyzing and devising a strategy to counter the adverse effect of the coalition".
He said one strategy would be for the party to avoid emphasizing the personality of the presidential candidate.
Campaign
Marzuki however said the alliance appeared to be a tentative agreement and it might split up after the elections.
"This is a coalition for the campaign... I do not think that it will automatically hold after the elections because they have differing political objectives."
A senior political observer Soedjati Djiwandono however hoped that the coalition would continue after the elections.
"As long as they are committed to political reform, I hope that they will be able to settle their differences," Soedjati told the Post.
He also said the coalition was "interesting".
"Rather than focusing their attention on the nomination of a presidential candidate they are concentrating their efforts on forming a coalition to win a majority in the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR)... because it is the Assembly that will be decisive in carrying on the reform process."
The 130 million voters will elect 462 legislators to the House of Representatives (DPR) and choose provincial legislatures.
The remaining 38 House seats are reserved for the military and police.
The DPR, plus 200 appointees from community groups and the provinces, will meet at the Assembly from August to choose a new president. The presidential election is slated for November.
"There is a possibility the three parties would be able to balance Golkar... what I hope is that other proreform parties would also participate in this kind of coalition," Soedjati said.
Earlier in the day, chairman of the National Awakening Party Matori Abdul Djalil said his party welcomed any proreform party to join the coalition.
He said that so far the three parties had yet to decide whether they were going to have joint campaigns. (byg/edt)