Before Tricking Mardiono's Chair In Wantimpres, Jokowi Invites PPP To Solve Internal Conflicts

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) with Vice President Ma'ruf Amin. (Doc on the Press Bureau of the Presidential Secretariat)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) invited PPP to resolve the internal party conflict first before taking care of the position of Muhamad Mardiono as a member of the Presidential Advisory Council (Wantimpres).

Mardiono is known to have been inaugurated as Plt. The general chairman of PPP replaced Suharso Monoarfa who was dismissed by three PPP assemblies.

"If it's not finished there, and that's the internal area of PPP, if it's (completed), there is clarity, then talk about the Wantimpres problem," said Jokowi at the State Palace in Jakarta, quoted from Antara, Wednesday, September 7.

Mardiono's position in PPP is currently contrary to the provisions that state that Wantimpres members should not hold concurrent positions as party leaders. This is contained in Article 12 of Law no. 19 of 2006 concerning the Presidential Advisory Council.

Meanwhile, the appointment of Mardiono and the dismissal of Suharso was based on the PPP National Working Conference (Mukernas) which was attended by the chairman and secretary of 27 PPP DPWs throughout Indonesia and held in Serang, Banten on Sunday, September 4.

"If it's not finished there, and that's the internal area of PPP, if it's (completed) there, there is clarity, then talk about the Wantimpres problem," Jokowi explained.

The replacement of the General Chairperson of PPP was the aftermath of Suharso Monoarfa's statement regarding the issue of the kiai envelope that he conveyed at the PPP cadre briefing event by the KPK in mid-August 2022.

After Mardiono was appointed as Acting Chairman of PPP, a number of PPP administrators had also submitted files for the new management results from the National Working Meeting to the Directorate General of General Legal Administration (Ditjen AHU) of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights (Kemenkumham) on Tuesday 6 September.

The file was also handed over directly by Mardiono who was accompanied by a number of elite party leaders bearing the Kaaba symbol.

Meanwhile, PPP Deputy Chairperson Arsul Sani who accompanied Mardiono said that the new management files submitted were only changes to the general chairman, namely the change of Suharso Monoarfa to Muhammad Mardiono.

However, Suharso, who is also the Minister of National Development Planning (PPN)/Head of Bappenas, rejected the results of the National Working Meeting, and emphasized that he was still serving as General Chair of PPP based on the provisions of the party's AD/ART.

As the General Chair of PPP, Suharso said that he always worked hard in uniting every party element following all the provisions, and inviting all parties to politics properly and correctly.