(Jakarta Post) Discord in PDI-P as members oppose fuel plan

12/12/2018

Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) central board member, Puan Maharani, who is also Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister, has insisted that her party remains solid despite opposition by several party politicians to the government’s plan to slash fuel subsidies.

“There’s no rift. The PDI-P remains solid,” Puan, the daughter of PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri, said at her ministry office on Friday.

Puan was responding to a query regarding a recent statement made by PDI-P lawmaker Effendi Simbolon, who criticized the administration of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo over its plan to raise fuel prices soon without preparing sufficient measures to improve the country’s energy sector.

Effendi had also lambasted Vice President Jusuf Kalla for his strong stance on the issue, which he found to be in contrast to Jokowi’s cautious approach. Kalla has responded to the criticism by saying that Effendi did not represent his party when making his statement.

Puan downplayed Effendi’s statement, noting that the PDI-P, which supported Jokowi’s presidential bid, had yet to issue a formal stance on the planned fuel hike.

“If there are individuals who express different opinions, it is simply political dynamics in the House. Our chairman has not yet issued an instruction. Such dynamics are common, but one thing is for sure, the PDI-P is always solid,” said Puan, a former PDI-P faction leader at the House of Representatives.

Interim PDI-P secretary-general, Hasto Kristiyanto, had earlier said that the PDI-P, as a party in the ruling coalition, would back Jokowi’s fuel-price hike plan.

Effendi is not the only high-profile PDI-P politician to have openly challenged the plan.

Rieke Diah Pitaloka, who was once touted as a leading candidate to take a ministerial position in Jokowi’s administration, has raised doubts over the effectiveness of the recently launched Productive Family welfare program to cushion the blow of the expected increase in fuel prices.

“I support Jokowi in implementing the KIS and the KIP [the Healthy Indonesia Card and the Smart Indonesia Card, which are part of the welfare program] as evidence that the government abides by the Constitution. But, I won’t support a rise in the price of subsidized fuels if it does not match with the basic principles of the Constitution,” she said.

Charta Politika political analyst Yunarto Wijaya suggested that the opposition of some PDI-P politicians to the fuel plan was aimed at safeguarding the party’s populist reputation in the eyes of voters.

“The PDI-P carries a burden as the party that consistently opposed fuel hikes proposed by the administration of president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. They did this to maintain their constituents’ support. I believe, in the end, all PDI-P members will accept the fuel-hike plan,” he said.

Yunarto said that it was very unlikely that the opposition to the fuel-price hike was deliberately promoted by individual PDI-P members who had failed to get positions in Jokowi’s administration.

“Whatever the motivations, whether they are truly against the fuel hike or disappointed by Jokowi or the party’s decision in the final line-up of the Cabinet, all PDI-P members will eventually take the same stance on this issue,” he said.

Ray Rangkuti, a political observer from the Indonesian Civil Society Circle (Lima), suspected that many of the PDI-P members would not tolerate what they perceived as Kalla’s dominance in Jokowi’s
administration.

“It appears that critics within the PDI-P aren’t looking to attack the policy but rather they are targeting Kalla, who tends to issue bold statements on important issues before the President does,” he said.

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(Jakarta Post) Discord in PDI-P as members oppose fuel plan