PAN hopes to double votes on past lessons
PAN hopes to double votes on past lessons
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Smarting from mistakes in the previous elections, the National
Mandate Party (PAN) has vowed to win about 15 percent of the vote
in the general election in April.
PAN chairman Amien Rais said on Monday that target was
realistic as a result of the party's consolidation and the
public's wider acceptance of its platform.
"My colleagues have told me the target is in the neighborhood
of 15 percent. We will rely on our captive market and new
markets, and 11 percent will be OK," he said during a visit to
The Jakarta Post.
As a new party, PAN won 7 percent of the vote in the 1999
elections, placing it among the six parties that exceeded the
electoral threshold of 10 seats in the House of Representatives.
The five other parties that exceeded the threshold were the
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), Golkar,
the United Development Party (PPP), the National Awakening Party
(PKB) and the Crescent Star Party (PBB).
PAN's vote target for this year's general election would be
more than enough to allow the party to contest the presidential
election, scheduled for July 5.
According to the presidential election law, a party must win
at least 3 percent of House seats or 5 percent of the vote to
contest the presidential election.
PAN has already nominated Amien as its presidential candidate.
Amien said that with its political experience, solidity and
strong network, PAN would receive more support in these elections
from first-time voters.
He acknowledged there was a faction within the party that
wished to turn PAN into an exclusive party, but he said he would
do his best to keep the faction under control.
"The problem is there and I have done my best to reduce it,"
he said.
Amien, a Muslim scholar and U.S. university graduate, believes
a religious-based party cannot win nationwide support.
Amien, speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly, praised
the progress the country has made under the leadership of
President Megawati Soekarnoputri, a potential rival in the
presidential election.
The current government, he said, has been able to maintain
political stability, with some exceptions in Papua, Aceh and the
Central Sulawesi town of Poso, where conflicts remain unresolved.
"Overall the picture is good and the macroeconomy is also
performing well," he said.
He said the direct presidential election must produce a strong
leader able to lead the nation to recovery.
He suggested reconstruction in the national leadership and
political system to help the nation emerge from its
multidimensional crisis.
A reconstruction of the country's leadership would not only
mean a change of guard, but also a new enthusiasm for completing
the reform agenda, he said.
Due to the daunting challenges facing the country, Amien
suggested a collective leadership.
Any changes in the country's legal, economic and political
systems must result in transparency and accountability to the
public, he said.