Surakarta Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka (right), who is President Joko Widodo’s eldest son, chats with (from left to right) Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo, Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto and State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir at the lounge of Adi Soemarmo Airport in Boyolali, Central Java, on July 24, 2023. - Antara
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network): The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has appeared to be distancing itself from President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and his policies in recent weeks, giving weight to speculation that the ruling party is preparing to enter the 2024 general election without the support of a “party official” whose allegiance it continues to question.
On Monday, PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri suggested at a book event that the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) would be better off disbanded because of its perceived ineffectiveness.
“I’ve told Pak Jokowi several times now, ‘Just shut down the KPK, it no longer works,’” she said in a speech in Jakarta, according to Kompas.com.
“I like to tell it like it is,” the senior politician said.
The 2002 formation of the antigraft superbody was hailed as a cornerstone of Megawati’s brief presidency and of the Reform Era as a whole, but critics have suggested she might also have played a role – through Jokowi, close allies or operatives in the KPK – in defanging the body in 2019.
The flagging anticorruption movement has been an Achilles heel for Jokowi amid otherwise high approval ratings. He continues to face criticism for allowing the KPK to lose much of its investigative and enforcement power under his watch.
Megawati’s remarks come about a week after PDI-P secretary general Hasto Kristiyanto publicly derided Jokowi’s food estate megaproject, which he said was marred with “conflicts of interest” because of the involvement of PT Agro Industry Nasional, a firm owned by a nonprofit foundation operated by the Defence Ministry and with close connections to the Gerindra Party.
Political observers believe this was a not-so-subtle swipe at Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, who has worked with PDI-P member Jokowi despite having lost to him in the 2014 and 2019 presidential elections.
The PDI-P, which is supporting Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo for the presidency in 2024, faces the arduous task of competing against Prabowo, the Gerindra Party’s presidential nominee, who has the backing of the largest electoral alliance yet heading into next year’s race.
Both Ganjar and Prabowo have positioned themselves as successors to Jokowi, with analysts and pollsters believing that whoever the President supports will likely have the edge over his rivals.
However, Jokowi has remained ambiguous about his preference, leading to speculation that he could back his former rival over a fellow party member.
A Tempo investigation claims Jokowi is the figure behind the formation of the four-way alliance backing Prabowo, which could pave the way for Jokowi’s eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka to become Prabowo’s running mate, should the Constitutional Court rule in favour of an ongoing petition to lower the minimum age for electoral candidates.
Last week, the PDI-P’s Central Java office failed to invite Surakarta Mayor Gibran to an internal party consolidation meeting. Ganjar was also absent, and the party’s local branch has since said that neither politician had received an invitation, prompting a public apology from senior party executive Bambang Wuryanto, local news outlets reported.
Earlier this month, Ganjar appeared to dismiss Gibran during a political outing in Surakarta, telling him that he would like to continue touring the city alone, Kompas TV reported.
Despite whispers of frayed ties between the PDI-P and the Jokowi clan, senior party politician Hendrawan Supratikno said the party remained certain it could count on Jokowi’s support heading into next year’s election.
“It’s impossible for Jokowi to be a Malin Kundang,” Hendrawan told The Jakarta Post on Monday, referring to a character from a West Sumatran folktale who is synonymous with betrayal.
In an apparent display of unity, the party posted two videos on Sunday and Monday of Gibran and Medan Mayor Bobby Nasution, Jokowi’s son-in-law, telling Indonesians to vote for the PDI-P and for Ganjar.
On the same day, Gibran traveled around Surakarta posting stickers of Ganjar on the windows of local houses. During this outing, the press asked Gibran’s opinion on PDI-P politician Budiman Sudjatmiko’s announcement that he would support Prabowo, not Ganjar, in the 2024 race.
While admitting that he was close with Budiman, Gibran said he would “stand firm” with the PDI-P and that he had “proven” his support for Ganjar time and time again, Tribunnews.com reported.
The PDI-P was supposed to announce sanctions against Budiman on Monday but failed to do so after party executives elected to discuss Ganjar’s recent rebound in electability polling instead.
Surveys from the research arm of Kompas daily and pollster Indikator Politik Indonesia found that Ganjar had restored a small lead of 2.8 percentage points and 2 percentage points, respectively, over his rival Prabowo.
Despite the PDI-P’s insistence that it retains Jokowi’s support, the Tempo report claims the party has prepared a campaign strategy for Ganjar that does not rely on the President. Hendrawan denied this claim, saying the party would not even entertain “such crude scenarios”.
Political analyst Firman Noor, on the other hand, vouched for the Tempo report, claiming it was “the sensible thing” for the ruling party to do.
“The PDI-P has to prepare different strategies for different scenarios, including if Jokowi stays neutral or if he supports Prabowo, which seems increasingly likely,” Firman said on Monday.
“The PDI-P is a big party, and I’m sure they are starting to consider that they can go the distance without Jokowi.”
Pointing to Budiman’s situation as an example, Firman said the PDI-P would not hesitate to take firm action against party members who did not toe the party line, which could also mean the PDI-P would oppose Jokowi if he decided to back Prabowo.
