Reading Jokowi's Direction Will Collapse

Illustration by Anndry WInarko VOI

JAKARTA - PDIP Secretary General Hasto Kristiyanto made a surprising statement. He said there was an attempt by President Joko Widodo to take the seat of PDIP General Chair from Megawati Soekarnoputri's hands.

According to Hasto, he heard that a powerful minister was sent to meet the former Minister of State Apparatus Empowerment of the Republic of Indonesia 9 and Minister of Regional Autonomy during the era of President Abdurrahman Wahid and the former Presidential Advisory Council in the SBY Age.

Hasto's statement certainly invites polemics and controversy from a number of parties. The president himself responded to the statement jokingly. "Well, he said about the General Chair of Golkar. Don't be like that," Jokowi told reporters who confirmed Hasto's statement. Jokowi also asked Hasto not to make statements that discredited him.

Senior PDIP politician Andreas Hugo Pareira said that Hasto is the Secretary General of the Party, he must have information and information traffic in and around his party.

"So I think what Hasto said has a basis, he conveys the information to the public is not arbitrary. But if Jokowi denies it's a normal thing," he said during a dialogue on TvOne.

According to Andreas, as an established party, has a long history, has a large mass base who doesn't want to be chairman. "But Ibu Mega's strong leadership is either at home or abroad. I think what Hasto said might be something that the public needs to know," he said.

Main Expert Staff of the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) Ali Mochtar Ngabalin had dismissed Hasto's statement. Even Ngabalin, who had a dialogue with Andreas, left a message to convey to Hasto.

"Please call it the name of the minister who is called powerful so as not to cause new slander. So to maintain Hasto's reputation, you must tell me who the minister is. In order to disseminate good politics and communication, I from the bottom of the room told Hasto who the Minister of Powerfull was, just open it up," he said.

Hasto is known to have issued controversial and polemic statements several times that seemed to attack the president. Previously, when speaking on Akbar Faizal's podcast, Hasto accused President Jokowi of being the person who had set fire to his own house, namely PDIP, because he was oriented and supporting other couples, not the presidential candidate chosen by his party, namely Ganjar-Mahfud. Recently, Hasto also mentioned and equalized Gibran like the truck driver who crashed into the Halim Utama Toll vehicle.

So far there has been no clear confirmation and clarification regarding accusations against President Jokowi who intends to take the seat of PDIP General Chair from Megawati's hands. Because Hasto himself disguised the figure of the minister Jokowi sent to Ryaas Rasyid to persuade Megawati. A number of parties who are said to be Hasto also have not confirmed the truth of Hasto's statement.

Jokowi And King Maker

Executive Director of Indonesian Political Indicators Burhanuddin Muhtadi assessed that Jokowi still has high electability in the eyes of the public and deserves to occupy the king maker position in the country. Unmitigated Jokowi's electability level in the world of politics defeated the senior position of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY).

In addition, Burhanuddin Muhtadi assessed that if Jokowi were one of the contestants in the 2024 General Election, he would certainly be the champion. In fact, Jokowi did not advance but if he endorsed one of the pairs of candidates, it was certain that the candidate pair would appear as the winner. This was proven by the election of the Prabowo-Gibran pair who won in one round. On the other hand, Ganjar-Mahfud, who in fact was a partner from the PDIP from the Jokowi Party, because he was not endorsed by that figure and seemed to be at odds with Jokowi, ended in defeat.

The Director of the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) Djayadi also expressed the same view that the previous president would take distance from the next government after he was no longer in office. However, not with Jokowi, according to Djayad, it is predicted that Jokowi will take other strategies to remain influential.

The right position, he said, became King Maker. According to Djayadi, there are two reasons for this position to be appropriate for Jokowi. The first reason is that there are two children in the government, Boby Nasution and Gibran Rakabuming Raka. The two Jokowi still left a number of strategic projects, which must be ensured their sustainability and went according to their idea, so that they become their traditional heritage.

The capital to become a King Maker has been owned, namely the ability to maintain the situation amidst the threat of an economic crisis. The ability as King Maker is increasingly proven after the pair he supports becomes the winner of the presidential election. People are so wondering what steps Jokowi will take after that. So that various issues circulated, initially it was rumored that they were targeting the position of Chairman of the Golkar Party and finally they were also asked to target the position of Chairman of the PDIP.

There is a Honorary Place in the Golkar Party.

Some of the elite Golkar supports and welcomes Jokowi's plans to join the party. Even the General Chairperson of Golkar, Airlangga Hartarto, has also expressed his willingness and promised an honorable place if Jokowi is willing to join.

Meanwhile, senior politicians from the Golkar party and vice president 10 and 12, Jusuf Kalla said anyone could join Golkar. But to become an administrator there are conditions. Moreover, to become general chairman, the condition is that they have been administrators for at least 5 years.

JK's statement regarding various requirements to become chairman was refuted by senior Golkar politician Ridwan Hisyam. He emphasized that before entering the PDIP, Jokowi had become a party cadre bearing the banyan tree in Solo in 2015. Jokowi had a very high chance to become chairman. Depending on the Golkar voter, if he wanted he could become chairman.

Then Ridwan told the track of Jusuf Kalla's membership journey, before Golkar became a party. Jusuf Kalla has never been a party administrator, before he was the Chairman of Hipmi (Entrepreneurs Association) and chairman of Kadin in South Sulawesi.

"So if there are conditions that must ever be a Golkar administrator, Jusuf Kalla must not be the general chairman because he is not yet a manager. But because the majority of voters want him to be the general chairman of Golkar," he said.

Political observer from UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Adi Prayitno said there must be a mutual interest or common interest that is a common ground between Jokowi and Golkar.

"The question is whether Jokowi wants to become a big Golkar family and whether Golkar is willing to accept Jokowi. Otherwise the narrative is just a figment," Adi Prayitno told VOI.

But Adi admitted that there is a narrative that is built as if Jokowi will join Golkar. But Adi said, If Jokowi has an intention and wants to have an influence, he must be the general chairman of the big party. Meanwhile, the opportunity for other parties that can be anchored to become chairman is PDIP. However, hearing that Jokowi's elite confession of PDIP returning to PDIP seems impossible, seeing the wounds caused after yesterday's presidential election. But no one knows what developments will occur and where Jokowi will be anchored. Is it as often echoed that he will return to Solo and be sidelined after not taking office. All that possibility can still happen