'PDI-P congress did accommodate demand for reform'

On the heels of its defeats in the 2004 legislative and presidential elections, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has formed a new central board under the leadership of Megawati Soekarnoputri, vowing to lure back and reach out to voters ahead of the 2009 elections. The Jakarta Post's M. Taufiqurrahman and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja talked at length with the party's new secretary-general Pramono Anung Wibowo about the party's future direction.

Question: What does the new lineup mean? It has people that have been left in the cold in the past years such as former secretary general Alexander Litaay and other people who joined the reform drive such as Guruh Soekarnoputra. Answer: The lineup is an indication that Mbak Mega (party president Megawati Soekarnoputri) took into consideration the plurality of PDI-P coverage of regions. The party consists of four regions, Sumatra which is represented by people like Mangara Siahaan, Agnetta Singadikane, Java and Bali which are represented by people like myself, Soetjipto, Tjahjo Kumolo and Dewi Jaksa, Kalimantan is represented by Emir Moeis and the eastern part of Indonesia is represented by Sony Keraf, Litaay and Jacob Nuwa Wea. However, she also took the people's capability into consideration when selecting them. Litaay had been banished from the party but now he has been taken back into the party fold. Does this indicate that PDI-P is embarking on a reconciliation drive after a much-publicized rift?

There was no rift during the congress. Clashing views between two opposing groups is nothing unusual and it is part of democracy, which has been developing within the party. The basic concept that has been proposed by the so-called reform group is good, maybe it is their way to express that which is unacceptable and it gave rise to an opposition from participants in the congress.

There is a prevailing sentiment within the PDI-P that a direct challenge to Megawati will be met with grassroots opposition. The reform drive, which was campaigned for while local party branches held their convention to nominate candidates for the new party leadership, received only a lukewarm response.

In the end the local branches still nominated Ibu Mega. Among indications that the grassroots members still wanted Ibu Mega was that her supporters were not well-organized, as opposed to supporters of the reform group who seemed to be well-prepared. It also showed that members of the party were also enthusiastic at seeing PDI-P as an opposition force, this is like the rebirth of our true spirit.

In the reform group, there are people like Laksamana Sukardi, Sukowaluyo Mintohardjo, and Mochtar Buchori, people who have been with the party for a long time and have contributed much to the party. Will the new leadership embrace them or alienate them?

PDI-P is not a static party. However, there are a few things that will be left unchanged: Pancasila as the national ideology, its populist orientation and democracy and openness. They could only be scrapped with the approval from four-fifths of our party members, but this is very unlikely.

For those who stood against the Bali congress, those who see the party from a different perspective, we will not shut them out altogether. In fact, it is a positive contribution to the party and the ideas were shared by some of the local branches during the congress. But on the surface, the reform idea appeared to focus on efforts to reduce the power of the party leader (Megawati), whether or not she will still be granted with so much authority and whether or not she has the sole right to handpick members of the central board. The issue is just the sum of the whole part.

What will be the future relations between the party establishment and the reform group?

The shifting of alliance within the congress is very dynamic, but it should not harm our relationship as party members who share the same ideals. I am of the opinion that we should sit together and find an amicable solution.

The party performed poorly in the 2004 elections and the slump was blamed on the party's tarnished image. What measures will the new board take to restore the party's image?

We are fully aware that the poor performance was the result of our deteriorating image. After being marginalized for so long, PDI-P changed overnight into a ruling party. This resulted in the change of behavior among our members, some of them forgot their roots and left their constituents.

To mend this, we set up an information and communication department that will do all the public relations work. It will be tasked with communicating all the good things within the PDI-P to the public. In the past, the public was only exposed to our members' ill behavior such as gambling, adultery and drug abuse.

Did the congress produce any change pertaining to the party leader's authority?

We shied away from discussing whether or not the party leader has the sole right to determine members of the central board, but we set a criteria that to be nominated for the PDI-P top post, candidates must be nominated by 25 percent of the congress delegates.

However, we saw in the congress that Megawati was the only candidate that won approval from more than 25 percent of the delegates and her accountability report, in fact, was approved by almost 100 percent of the delegates.

And according to the new statute, which states that if a candidate wins more than 75 percent of support, she or he will unanimously be declared a new leader. Hence, Megawati is the party leader for the 2005-2010 term.

Authority has been granted to Megawati on the issues of national ideology, the form of state, the preamble of the state Constitution and issues relating to the party organization. The last issue sparked a heated debate during the congress and in the end, we agreed to modify it.

The prerogatives are still given to strategic issues that will have a long-term impact for the party. We hope that the modification can dispel worries that her power could be abused to give favor to candidates who contest in the local elections. Based on past experiences, delegates in the congress feared that such power could be abused by those in Megawati's inner circle because she did not have enough time to do everything. But now they can be assured that it won't happen again, because the party leader must deliver an accountability report. How did PDI-P prepare itself for the 2009 elections?

The congress has decided that PDI-P will play an effective opposition role and we have turned ideals into action by forming a shadow cabinet. Our central board lineup also has departments that oversee issues such as regional autonomy, internal and external affairs, defense and the environment. These departments will work to draw up alternative policies to be judged against those offered by the government. This is unprecedented because thus far, there have been no political parties that openly declared themselves an opposition.