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PAN chief backtracks, denies leaving KMP
Jakarta Post - September 4, 2015
Speaking after the one-hour meeting at the Bakrie Center in Jakarta, Zulkifli denied joining the ruling coalition of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, the Great Indonesia Coalition (KIH).
"I didn't say that I was exiting [the KMP] or joining the KIH. We are joining the government by focusing on how to tackle the problems that this nation is facing. That's the form of our support and the participation of PAN in the government," he told reporters, flanked by KMP luminaries including Golkar Party chairman Aburizal "Ical" Bakrie and Gerindra chairman Prabowo Subianto.
Zulkifli had previously pledged that PAN's faction at the House would follow the direction set up by Jokowi's ruling coalition. However, he denied this meant his party would be permanently opposed to the KMP.
"Is it really necessary to pit the KMP against the KIH all the time? The KMP will support [the government] if its programs are pro-people. I believe the substance is more important than the outfit," he said.
Zulkifli's move nonetheless drastically weakens the KMP. The opposition coalition is now primarily made up of loyal members of the Gerindra Party, the leading opposition party, and the Islamic Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).
The KMP had already been crippled by the descent of two of its factions, the Golkar Party and the United Development Party (PPP), into bitter internal divisions stemming from leadership disputes. These changes have caused both Golkar and the PPP to gravitate toward the government.
Having officially declared its support for Jokowi, PAN will bring in an additional 48 votes to the existing 208 votes secured by the ruling coalition at the legislature.
Zulkifli's equivocation puts PAN on a par with the Democratic Party, which has refused to join either House coalition, professing to remain neutral and choosing its own stance on each debate.
The Democratic Party, however, was quick to join the opposition to obtain all leadership posts at the House and the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).
Zulkifli, who is also MPR speaker, is said to have been handpicked by Democratic Party chairman and former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to be nominated in the race.
In subsequent political processes at the House, the Democratic Party has regularly switched between supporting and opposing the government.
By claiming to support the government, PAN may try to position itself as a supporter of the President and his Cabinet, instead of making permanent alliances with either of the party coalitions.
Zulkifli did not warn other KMP members of his planned announcement on Wednesday, and many were taken aback upon hearing of it.
"I wanted to tell Pak Ical and Pak Prabowo, but I was worried that [the delivery of the message] was not complete. That's why I asked Pak Ical for his time to convey PAN's stance on the government," Zulkifli said.
KMP coordinator Idrus Marham, however, said that any important decision made by a member of the coalition should be first discussed with coalition partners.
Idrus added that PAN was an integral part of the opposition coalition, all members of which had endorsed the same presidential candidate.
"The embryo of the KMP's birth was the presidential candidate pair of Prabowo from the Gerindra Party and Hatta [Rajasa] from PAN. The PKS and the Golkar Party were just supporters," he noted.
Both Aburizal and Prabowo, meanwhile, said that the opposition coalition understood PAN's decision and fully supported it, Prabowo adding, however, that his party would not change its stance.
"I reaffirm that we respect our friend's decision [...] we also reaffirm our stance that in order to conduct democracy properly, we need checks and balances for the greater good," he said.
Aburizal, for his part, claimed that the coalition was not disappointed by Zulkifli's defection. "Disappointed? Disappointment is a matter for the heart – a matter for lovers, not for politicians," he said smilingly.
His smile was nowhere to be seen, though, during Zulkifli's post-meeting remarks to the press. Abuziral and Prabowo both remained stony-faced until the press conference ended and they were asked to pose for photos with their erstwhile ally.
In the photos, the pair could only muster a thumbs-up each and refused to join and raise their hands, a common pose for the opposition caucus. Pressed by photographers to adopt the pose, Zulkifli responded curtly, "That'll do. That's enough, isn't it?"
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/09/04/pan-chief-backtracks-denies-leaving-kmp.html.
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