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.