A member of the Indonesia Democratic Party Struggle (PDIP) faction in the DPR, Arya Bima, said here on Monday that the decision was made upon the request of the DPD, which has yet to nominate a candidate for the MPR leadership.
The 10 factions in the DPR will propose two packages of candidates---one from the Red-White coalition (KMP) and one from the Great Indonesia faction (KIH).
In a meeting last Wednesday (October 1), the DPD had proposed the names of nine candidates to be chosen by the two coalitions.
Bima further stated that six factions had agreed to the DPDs request for postponement, while four were against it.
The six factions that were in favor of the postponement were the PDIP, the National Awakening Party (PKB), the National Democratic Party (Nasdem), the Peoples Conscience Party (Hanura), the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the United Development Party (PPP). They are all members of the KIH, with the exception of PKS and PPP.
The four that were against the postponement were the Golkar Party, the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), the Democratic Party (PD) and the National Mandate Party (PAN), all members of the KMP coalition.
As six of the ten factions had agreed to the postponement, it was finally decided that the election will be held on Tuesday (October 7) at 10 a.m., Bimba reinstated, adding that PDIP and other KIH members will use this extra time to lobby other parties.
According to rumors, the KMP candidates are either Syarief Hasan or Nurhayati Assegaf from PD, Mayudin from Golkar, Hidayat Nur Wahid from PKS, Zulkifli Hasan from PAN and a candidate from DPD.
Moreover, the KIH candidates are rumored to include one from DPD, Syarif Hasan from PD, Agun Gunanjar from the Golkar Party, Ahmad Basarah from PDIP and Bachtir Aly from Nasdem.
Moreover, the KMP recently secured leadership of the DPR, with Setya Novanto of the Golkar Party appointed as the house speaker.
During the vote, the KIH, which has only four political parties as members, walked out in protest against the use of the package system of election that requires five candidates from different party factions to be chosen for leadership in the DPR.
Furthermore, under the old system, the winner of the elections would automatically be elected chairman of the DPR leadership.
However, ahead of the DPR leadership election, the KMP had successfully passed a law requiring election of DPR leadership, according to which the winner of the legislative elections will not automatically become the chairman.
This is why the election of the MPR leadership is crucial for PDIP, which had won the legislative elections on April 9.
Reporting by Riza Harahap
(R024/H-YH/INE)
EDITED BY INE
(H-YH)
(KR-BSR/H-YH)
Editor: Jafar M Sidik
Copyright © ANTARA 2014
