PKB confirms support for Wiranto

PKB confirms support for Wiranto

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Surabaya/Semarang

Presidential candidate Gen. (ret) Wiranto of the Golkar Party and
running mate Solahuddin Wahid finally secured support from the
National Awakening Party (PKB) on Wednesday, but not from but its
influential cofounder Abdurrahman Wahid.

Abdurrahman, better known as Gus Dur, said he endorsed the bid
of Wiranto and former rights campaigner Solahuddin, who is also
his brother, but would not vote in the July 5 poll in protest
over the General Election Commission (KPU)'s decision to
disqualify him as a presidential candidate.

"The PKB executive board in a plenary session today
(Wednesday) unanimously decided to nominate Solahuddin as its
candidate for the vice presidency, paired with Wiranto," Gus Dur
told a press conference.

The party, however, will withdraw its support if in the near
future the KPU reviews its decision to disqualify Gus Dur from
the poll.

The KPU ruled that the visually impaired former president was
unfit to run in the election.

Party chairman Alwi Shihab, executives Mahfud M.D. and Arifin
Junaidi and several influential clerics of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU)
Abdullah Faqih from Langitan, East Java, Abdurrahman Chudori from
Magelang, Central Java, Muhammad Gunarto from Temanggung, Central
Java, Mas Ahmad Subadar from Pasuruan, East Java and Muhammad
Idris Marzuki from Lirboyo, East Java were all present. Another
influential cleric, Abdullah Abbas from Buntet Islamic boarding
school in Cirebon, West Java, did not attend.

Abbas has reportedly lent his support to NU Chairman Hasyim
Muzadi in the election as the running mate for President Megawati
Soekarnoputri, who is nominated by the Indonesian Democratic
Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

PKB also decided to manage the campaign for Wiranto and
Solahuddin ahead of the election.

PKB secured the third largest number of votes in the recent
legislative election behind Golkar and PDI-P. PKB has its roots
in the NU, the country's largest Muslim organization which has 40
million followers.

Wiranto hailed PKB's decision, calling it as "a confirmation
of the commitment from both Golkar and PKB."

"From the very beginning, I have predicted that PKB will
support me. The decision is a confirmation for Solahuddin and I.
I thank the party for the support and now I'm confident that I
will win the upcoming election," Wiranto said in Pekalongan,
Central Java.

But political analyst Daniel Sparringa from Airlangga
University in Surabaya did not share Wiranto's optimism. Daniel
said Gus Dur had created "a fair battle" among NU-linked
candidates.

"Most of the NU members will follow each word coming from Gus
Dur. Indeed he agreed to allow PKB to support Solahuddin, who was
a deputy NU chairman. But since the most influential figure in
NU, Gus Dur, said he would boycott the election, PKB's support
will not automatically translate into a huge number of votes for
Solahuddin.

"Of course it is a good political experience for NU followers
because they will have other options in exercising their
political rights after being loyal to the PKB for the past five
years," Daniel told The Jakarta Post.

Moments after the PKB announced its support for Wiranto and
Solahuddin, the wives of the two, Rugaiya Usman Wiranto and
Faridah S. Wahid, visited the NU women's dormitory in Surabaya,
asking the students to vote for their spouses.

The two women also plan to visit several boarding schools in
East Java, including Paiton in Probolinggo.

NU support -- Page 2