Banteng Attack For Jokowi

Illustration by Andry Winarko VOI

JAKARTA I want to retire back to Solo. That's President Joko Widodo's short answer when responding to the issue of becoming the General Chair of the PDI-P after his term of office ends October 2024.

This answer was made by Jokowi on Thursday, October 5, 2023 after leading the TNI Anniversary commemoration ceremony at Monas Square. This statement is also Jokowi's answer to the proposal from Guntur Soekarnoputra who hopes that the former Governor of DKI Jakarta will continue the PDI-P leadership relay from Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Several months later, rumors of taking over the seat of the PDI-P General Chair by Jokowi heated up again. This was triggered by a statement by the Secretary General of the PDI-P, Hasto Kristiyanto in a discussion in Jakarta, Tuesday, April 2.

"So first it was abuse of power. The TNI and Polri also have many witnesses who stated. then the political vehicle used to be Golkar, now the idea of a large permanent coalition, the plan to take over Golkar and PDIP," said Hasto when starting his statement.

He continued, in Jokowi's cabinet, there are powerful ministers and super powerful ministers. However, the task of bridging the takeover of the PDIP Ketum seat is the powerful minister.

"Long before the election, 5-6 months, there was a powerful minister, some were super powerful and powerful, so I didn't get the wrong image," he said.

"This (powerful minister) was assigned to meet Mr. Ryaas Rasyid by Jokowi. Mr. Ryaas Rasyid was assigned to persuade Mrs. Mega so that the PDIP leadership would be handed over by Mr. Jokowi," continued Hasto.

Similar to when a proposal emerged from Guntur Soekarnoputra, Jokowi immediately responded to Hasto's statement. "Not Golkar?" while asking back, considering that so far he has been rumored to have taken over the Golkar Party.

The former mayor of Solo was surprised by the rumors that linked himself to the chair of the general chairman of a political party. He asked the parties not to raise rumors alone.

"He said he wanted to fight for Golkar, he said he wanted to fight, when everyone wanted to be taken away, not like that, not like that," said Jokowi.

Between Jokowi And Megawati's Camp

Political observer from Unair, Airlangga Pribadi thinks that if Hasto's accusations are true, then it can open a puzzle that has been asking questions about the internal political division of the PDI-P between Jokowi and Megawati Soekarnoputri.

"Because that can be the answer, what can keep Jokowi in the vortex of power after his term ends. Of course being the General Chair of the PDI-P can be an interesting option," he said, Saturday, April 6.

Although the truth is not necessarily proven, Airlangga Pribadi's nickname sees this as something rational and logical if it happens. However, in terms of possibility, it must be admitted that these rumors will be difficult to materialize as a result of the political struggle in the 2024 presidential election.

"The impact of yesterday's presidential election has a strong impression that internally the PDI-P has not been able to accept Jokowi's figure. This can hinder Jokowi if he intends to take the chair of chairman from Megawati Soekarnoputri," he explained.

Angga added that another option that Jokowi could take if he still wanted to be in the vortex of power was to become the General Chair of the Golkar Party. Moreover, the position of the Golkar Party is the second winning political party under the PDI-P in the last legislative election.

He suspected that Hasto Kristiyanto's accusations were aimed at the public knowing how the internal political struggle of the PDI-P involved Jokowi in being unacceptable to the internal party led by Megawati.

"It is not impossible that in the future there will be more that will be opened regarding conflicts or collisions within the PDI-P involving Jokowi. I don't think this has all been opened to the public. I suspect there are still truf cards that have not been opened by the PDI-P," said Angga.

Could The Secretary General Of PDIP Be Industri?

PPI executive director Adi Prayitno stated that the issue of the succession of leadership in a political party that dragged Jokowi's name could be true or just a rumor. "But it's just a consumption of the political elite, not just a chat coffee shop," he added.

He added that in the case of Jokowi's accusation of taking over the PDI-P, the public could assume that it was true considering that it was the figure of Hasto Kristiyanto who incidentally was the Secretary General of the PDI-P.

"If you are in the class of the party secretary general, is it possible to lie? Even though we all know that the official vote from the PDI-P is certainly Mrs. Megawati," he said.

Adi said that the reason Hasto attacked Jokowi and his extended family was a follow-up stage of the 'brother war' which began in the 2024 presidential election. This can be seen from the frequent disclosure of the PDI-P kitchen which involved Jokowi, including regrets of giving Jokowi and his family a red carpet in the Indonesian political arena.

"It's no surprise that in the future, the PDI-P will open another 'borok' Jokowi which they have been closing down. This is an expression of their disappointment with Jokowi, who has been considered part of the big family of the PDI-P," he said.

He reminded that before being associated with the chair of the PDI-P General Chair, Jokowi had already been linked with the Gerindra Party and Golkar Party. Even Adi said that the coalition between Jokowi and Prabowo Subianto caused public perception that Jokowi was already in Gerindra.

One thing that the public should not forget is that in politics maybe such talks do exist under the surface where only a handful of people know. That might happen. But when it's opened to the public, this 'goods' won't happen," Adi explained.

According to him, it is a natural thing for Jokowi to always be associated with the succession of political party leadership. Because, there are already predictions that in fact Jokowi in his two terms of leadership is not a powerful president.

In his first term, Jokowi was always considered a party official as Megawati Soekarnoputri often stated. This makes Jokowi like an inferior to political parties including the PDI-P.

Entering the second period, Jokowi seemed to be enjoying his term as president being hit by the Covid-19 pandemic for two years. The problem is that when the pandemic is over, Jokowi's term of office will end.

"So it's as natural when there is a three-term position issue, an extension of the term of office due to the pandemic and always associated with Jokowi wants to have a political influence after he is no longer president. Especially with Gibran's current position. That's a very rational reason if Jokowi is associated with the chairperson of the political party, because that way Jokowi's influence and determination will be considered after stepping down," said Adi.

"Well, if you look at the current situation, Jokowi's relationship with the PDI-P is 'wassalam'. If you really want to enter other political parties, most likely yes in the Golkar Party or Gerindra," he continued.

All For The Sake Of Gibran

Senior politician Zulpan Lindan actually revealed something quite surprising. He said that in 2014, he had communicated with Surya Paloh. During the conversation, it was stated that it would be extraordinary if Jokowi was willing to become Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the NasDem Party.

"Even though it's been a long time, with NasDem's current position, it would certainly be an attractive option for a Jokowi if he was willing to become Chairman of the NasDem Board of Trustees," he said.

Indobarometer's executive director, Muhammad Qodari, has different opinions. He considered that Jokowi might not join any political parties. Because Jokowi could have encouraged Gibran Rakabuming Raka to join political parties outside the PDI-P.

"Mas Gibran could join Golkar. This can be mutually beneficial for both Gibran and Golkar in the future. Gibran can occupy strategic positions including the general chairman while Golkar can attract young voters in the upcoming elections," he said.

Meanwhile, in the PDI-P, Jokowi could still have influence through internal factions. He suspects that there has been a'split' or faction related to the succession of the PDI-P leadership.

"I see it like that. There is a faction of Prananda, on the other hand there is a faction of Puan Maharani. My reading, Mbak Puan's faction is more open to communicating with Pak Jokowi than his faction Mas Prananda," said Qodari.