Regarding KIB Solidity, PPP Believes Cadres Support Candidates Decided Together

PPP DPP chairman Achmad Baidowi (Awiek). (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The United Indonesia Coalition is predicted to be solid if there is openness between the political parties involved, namely Golkar, PAN and PPP. On the other hand, this coalition will quickly disband if the communication does not proceed fairly.

Responding to this, the chairman of the PPP DPP Ahmad Baidowi, believes that the KIB parties can discipline the cadres to support the candidates that have been jointly determined. In particular, the presidential and vice presidential candidates that have been decided together.

“It is the duty of each party to be able to discipline its cadres so that they can guard, comply with and support joint decisions at KIB. I am sure of that,” said Baidowi in Jakarta, Friday, June 10.

The PPP politician, who is familiarly called Awiek, also believes that high-ranking officials at KIB who are also Jokowi's ministers can stay focused on their work. It is known that the General Chair of PPP, Suharso Monoarfa, is the Minister of National Development Planning/Bappenas, while the General Chair of Golkar is the Coordinating Minister for the Economy.

"I think they can still focus, moreover the processes and activities at KIB are carried out outside their working hours as ministers in President Jokowi's cabinet," explained Awiek.

Previously, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) assessed that the United Indonesia coalition was a strategic coalition because it was formed earlier and had met the minimum requirements for nomination support of 20 percent.

However, the Head of the Department of Politics and Social Change at CSIS, Arya Fernandes, assessed that there were three important things that could affect the solidity or durability of the United Indonesia Coalition. First, how fair and open power sharing is to be discussed within the internal parties that will form a coalition.

"If it is more open and fair, it is predicted that the coalition will be more solid. But if not, it is predicted that it will easily disband," said Arya in a discussion entitled "Maneuvering the Party Coalition Ahead of the Presidential Election: Motivation and Resilience" online, Wednesday, June 8.

Second, how capable of carrying the potential winning candidate. Because if it doesn't have the potential to win, said Arya, the coalition will be vulnerable to disbanding because there will be external pulls to move to another coalition that is considered capable of carrying out a candidate who has the potential to win.

Third, it is influenced by how well they represent the preferences of voters when they decide to join another coalition.

"This is an important factor. Because if you can't read the direction of party voters, it will certainly affect the support of party voters," he concluded.