PPP gears up for chairmanship election
JAKARTA (JP): Top leaders of the United Development Party (PPP) yesterday sought to play down the race for the chairmanship that will be decided at its upcoming congress in August.
PPP Chairman Ismail Hasan Metareum yesterday informed President Soeharto on the upcoming congress but declined to reveal whether or not he intends to run again.
"I haven't made my decision yet," he told reporters after the meeting with Soeharto at the Bina Graha presidential office.
"We shall discuss it later. Now let's concentrate on the preparations for the congress," he said.
If he decides to run, Ismail Hasan will face a formidable challenge as Nahdlatul Ulama, the largest of the four factions in the party, is bent on wresting the chair for one of their own.
His critics say there are other reasons why Ismail Hasan, who is a conservative, should step aside.
Party insiders feel that PPP needs a more publicly popular leader at the next general election in 1997 if the party is to keep stride with the popularity of Harmoko and Megawati Soekarnoputri, the respective heads of the ruling organization Golkar and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).
PPP has been a distant second to Golkar in the last five elections, but its position as perennial bridesmaid is now being threatened by the PDI.
Yesterday Ismail Hasan led the congress' organizing committee to meet with President Soeharto to ask him to open Aug 29.-Sept. 2 gathering.
His Secretary General Matori Abdul Djalil, a possible candidate for the chair who was also present yesterday, also declined to answer questions about his chances.
"Let's not jump too far ahead," said Matori, one of the NU politicians to have made it onto the PPP Central Executive Board.
PPP is a fusion of four Islamic parties -- NU, Parmusi, PSII and Perti. Its leadership has always been held by people originating from Parmusi.
NU's strength
Despite NU's strength in mobilizing voters in past elections, the organization has been virtually left out of the PPP's decision making process, a factor that led to its 1984 declaration to severe formal links with the party and to abandon politics completely to concentrate on religious propagation and education.
Many NU leaders and supporters, however, have remained loyal to PPP, which they still consider the only party which represents the interests of Moslems'.
A number of NU politicians plan to meet in Rembang, Central Java, on June 26 to discuss their strategy for taking the chair.
The outcome of the election will largely be determined by the participants in the congress and on this front Ismail Hasan has the upper hand. The majority of leaders at the conference will be from PPP's provincial and regency branches, many of whom are Ismail Hasan's appointees.
Ismail Hasan said the congress will have about 1,000 participants.
President Soeharto yesterday emphasized the need to maintain party unity.
The PPP chairman said the presence of factions within the party will continue to exist. The main thing is that divisions within the party should not be along factional lines, he said.
Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono on a separate occasion yesterday emphasized that the government would not intervene in the PPP leadership election. (arf)