Distributes Oil While Campaigning For Legislative Candidate, Observer: Spontaneous, Zulhas Restless PAN Survey Is Below 4 Percent

Zulkifli Hasan alias Zulhas was appointed Minister of Trade on June 15. (Antara)

JAKARTA - The action of PAN chairman Zulkifli Hasan alias Zulhas to distribute free cooking oil while asking his daughter Futri Zulya Savitri to be elected in the general election has sparked a polemic. Because Zulhas campaigned for his daughter while on duty as Minister of Trade (Mendag).

A political observer from Al Azhar University Indonesia, Andriadi Achmad assessed that Zulhas should not carry out party activities let alone campaign at the same time as the activities of the ministry he leads, namely monitoring the distribution of subsidized cooking oil from the government, named Minyakita.

"Without Zulhas even campaigning, the public already knows that Zulhas is the chairman of PAN and of course, his activities and work programs in the field will indirectly affect PAN's vote in the 2024 Election," Andriadi told VOI, Wednesday, July 13.

However, the Executive Director of the Nusantara PolCom SRC Institute considered that Zulhas' efforts to campaign for his son could be done spontaneously. According to him, Zulhas wants PAN to be successful in the general election because his party is still "haunted" by his party not passing the parliamentary threshold or the 4 percent parliamentary threshold.

On that basis, continued Andriadi, Zulhas campaigned for legislative candidates from the party bearing the sun symbol, which is his own daughter, Futri Zulya Savitri. Futri, who serves as the administrator of the PAN DPP, has stepped forward as a PAN legislative candidate for the Lampung 1 electoral district.

"I see Zulhas's anxiety and concern, because various surveys have shown that PAN's electability is below the 4 percent threshold and tends not to pass the PT in the 2024 Legislative Election," said Andriadi.

"So, spontaneously without realizing the current momentum as the Ministry of Trade is used by Zulhas to step on the gas while campaigning. Even though the position of the Ministry of Trade is being highlighted by the public, due to the high increase in cooking oil to date and increases in other basic commodities," he continued.

Therefore, according to Andriadi, if Zulhas can calculate more wisely and carefully, the Ministry of Trade in neutralizing and even lowering the price of cooking oil in the market can succeed under his leadership. This, he said, would be a positive value for Zulhas, the Ministry of Trade, and PAN, of course, in the 2024 Legislative Election.

"I think almost all parties will benefit from the presence of their cadres in the ministry if they are able to utilize their work programs as optimally as possible for the benefit of and touch the people," said Andriadi. "However, on the contrary, if the presence of cadres in the ministry is considered negative and bad in the eyes of the people, it will have an impact on their party," he said.