PDI Perjuangan may remove outspoken legislators
A'an Suryana and Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After repeated denials, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) dropped on Friday the clearest hint of its intention to remove its nonconformist legislators from the House of Representatives.
Taufik Kiemas, influential member of the ruling party and husband of the President, said the possibility of kicking out some PDI Perjuangan legislators was very real as the party was trying to maintain internal conformity and order.
"A reshuffle could happen any time and affect anyone. Even, I can be removed, if I haven't strictly obeyed the party's rulings and orders," Taufik told reporters after attending the House plenary session to hear his wife, President Megawati Soekarnoputri, make a speech on the proposed state budget.
Megawati is also the chairperson of PDI Perjuangan.
Reports have been circulating recently that the party was seeking the replacement of House legislators Arifin Panigoro, Julius Usman, Meilono Suwondo and Haryanto Taslam.
Taufik claimed that such a reshuffle was legitimate and would not be antidemocratic. "Such dismissals are necessary if they are done to maintain the party's regulations and order," he added.
The law on composition of legislative bodies allows a party to dismiss its representatives from the House or the People's Consultative Assembly for crimes or "other violations". But according to the law, none can be dropped for freely expressing themselves even if that expression happens to run counter to an order from the chief of the party, which is apparently what the four free-thinking members have done.
Taufik, however, stopped short of making a clear reference to the four legislators, who have, on occasion, been known to exercise their right of freedom of expression to criticize Megawati's leadership style.
"I've not heard about the exact details of who will be dismissed," Taufik avowed.
The whole issue has come to a head after a meeting of the party's research and development body on July 25, which was attended by prominent figures within the party, including Arifin, Meilono, Julius and Haryanto and Roy B.B. Janis, the chairman of PDI Perjuangan faction at the House.
During the meeting, participants raised complaints about Megawati's failure to consult the party's board of executives before making crucial decisions.
The most recent example was the election of several governors, in which Megawati turned a deaf ear to the voices of the party's provincial chapters and handpicked her own choices that party members were ordered to vote for. This occurred in the gubernatorial elections in Jakarta, Lampung, East Kalimantan, Central Java and Bali.
Arifin, who is also an oil magnate, has lashed out at the way Megawati rejected the gubernatorial candidates that were proposed by the party chapters in each province.
Participants at the July 25 meeting were also concerned about the declining popularity of Megawati and the party, as revealed by a recent poll conducted by the party's research and development body.
If such a reshuffle indeed takes place, PDI Perjuangan would reportedly be looking to replace Roy and Arifin as the chairman of the party's faction at the House and the Assembly respectively with Cahyo Kumolo, the current secretary of the party's faction at the House, while Jakob Tobing has been touted for Arifin's spot.
Both Cahyo and Jakob used to be Golkar legislators.
Meanwhile, Roy said after the House plenary session on Friday that a plan to fire nonconformist legislators would be a major setback for the party and democracy as a whole.
"If it (dismissal) really takes place, then we have well and truly returned to the era of the New Order, when legislators who exercised freedom of expression were pulled out, even though they were just articulating the people's voice," he asserted.