Time ripe for NU to return to politics: Scholar
JAKARTA (JP): A political observer feels that the time is right for Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Indonesia's largest Moslem organization, to return to the political arena which it abandoned 10 years ago.
NU can grab the opportunity to take the reins at the United Development Party (PPP) if it wants to, Kacung Marijan said, as reported by Antara. Kacung Marijan is a political lecturer at the Airlangga University in Surabaya, East Java. He is also a specialist on Islamic politics and authored the book Quo Vadis NU?,
NU formally left the political arena in 1984 when it severed its formal links with the party which it helped found in 1972.
Although NU was the largest of four Moslem factions that made up the PPP, it had never held the leadership of the party. This was one of the reasons cited for leaving the party and allowing members to cast their votes for the party of their choice at general elections.
However, many NU leaders and supporters have remained loyal to PPP despite attempts by some of its leaders to deflate the party in the 1987 and 1992 elections.
PPP, the second largest political party after Golkar, is scheduled to hold its congress in August during which it will elect its leadership board. It is currently chaired by Ismail Hasan Metareum.
Kacung said if the chairmanship election is held openly, NU could win the election because of their numerical dominance. However, if the election is held through an electoral college as has been the practice in the past, NU will likely lose the vote again.
One factor that is working in NU's favor is the declining ability of the government to intervene in the affairs of political parties, as shown by the congress of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) in December which swept Megawati Soekarnoputri to the top post.
Megawati, a daughter of former president Sukarno, beat the government's choice of candidates in the PDI election.
Kacung estimated that NU only controls 104 of PPP's 310 branches and this composition could be a telling factor on the chairmanship election.
Chairman
PPP, the most conservative of the three political parties, has come under pressure to elect a new leader who is more popular than the present chairman. This would be necessary to match the popularity of Megawati and Harmoko, the chairman of Golkar and minister of information.
NU's current chairman, Abdurrahman Wahid, a vocal and often controversial figure, is considered by some as the ideal individual to lead the PPP. However, he has not yet made clear his intentions, one day saying he was prepared to run and the next day saying he would rather stay at NU.
Many in the NU also opposed the idea of nominating the charismatic Abdurrahman for the PPP chairmanship.
The deputy chairman of the East Java's regional board H.M. Muhyiddin Suwondo said this week that such a move would be a setback. He also warned PPP against using NU simply to boost their chances at the next election.
At this point, NU leaders are split about whether or not they should return to the political arena, given their bitter past experiences and the commitment they made in 1984 to concentrate on religious propagation and education. (par)