PDI Perjuangan members defy Megawati

PDI Perjuangan members defy Megawati

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Members of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI
Perjuangan) have got a boost of confidence to challenge
chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri after their latest expression
of defiance was ignored by Megawati.

After publicly ignoring Megawati's instruction during the vote
for the establishment of the House of Representatives' special
committee to probe a graft case last Monday, legislators were
assured that there would be no sanctions imposed on them.

"The chairwoman considers that the problem is over," the
party's faction chairman at the People's Consultative Assembly,
Arifin Panigoro, said on Saturday.

"None of the defying members get sanctions from the
chairwoman," he said, referring to Megawati, who is also the
country's President.

In a bid to secure political support for her presidency, at
least from the second-largest political party, Golkar, Megawati
instructed the party's legislators to reject the establishment of
the House special committee to probe the alleged misuse of State
Logistics Agency (Bulog) funds.

The case implicated Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung, who played
a pivotal role in helping then vice president Megawati ascend to
president in the Assembly's special session last year.

To Megawati's surprise, only three of 100 party legislators in
attendance followed the instruction, while five of them voted for
the establishment of the committee and the remaining 92 chose to
abstain. There are a total of 153 PDI Perjuangan legislators in
the House.

The motion showed that most PDI Perjuangan legislators
disagreed with Megawati's decision to save Akbar from further
political damage because of the graft case.

Sources told The Jakarta Post that at the opening ceremony of
the party's leadership meeting in Bogor on Thursday, Megawati
expressed her anxiety over the July 1 incident.

"I feel that most PDI Perjuangan members now dare to defy my
instructions," they quoted Megawati as saying.

She was also upset as many party executives questioned her
decision to block the people's aspirations and reject the
establishment of the special committee.

Meanwhile, the party's secretary-general, Sutjipto, said
Megawati had never raised the matters during the three-day
leadership meeting, which ended on Saturday.

"The chairwoman did not even ask the reasons why the
legislators had defied her instruction. It is considered to be
over," he remarked.

Another source revealed that many PDI Perjuangan members were
disappointed with Megawati's decision on the committee's
establishment and for the support she gave to Jakarta's governor
candidate Sutiyoso.

"We could not understand why she continues to disappoint the
people and we will not defend her if other parties try to topple
her because of the two blunders," the source said.

"If she keeps this up, there will be a point where we really
are going to ignore her," the source added.