Jokowi-Prabowo’s Meeting with Megawati
The Deputy Chairman of Gerindra Party Arief Poyuono told the press that his boss Prabowo Subianto will meet with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and the Chairwoman of the ruling party PDI-P Megawati Soekarnoputri today (Jul 24). It’ll be Prabowo’s second meeting with Jokowi and the first time with Megawati after the election.
Golkar Race: Digging Bamsoet Cases
Some Golkar Party politicians recently questioned the credibility of Bambang Soesatyo’s (Bamsoet) Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree obtained from the Institute Management Newport Indonesia (IMNI). Bamsoet’s supporters, however, sees the said maneuver as a form of black campaign against the House Speaker ahead of the Party’s chairmanship congress (Munas) that scheduled in December 2019. If that’s true, will his opponents revisit the other past cases implicating Bamsoet?
Ahok bids farewell to politics?
The famous former Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (Ahok) made some interesting remarks after receiving the Roosseno Award IX-2019 for his integrity, work ethic, and professionalism as public official on Monday (July 22). “It’s impossible to be a minister. I’m (seen as) a defective person in this republic, not wanted in such position,” said Ahok.
Ahok has often been tipped by some, including politicians from Partai Solidaritas Indonesia (PSI)—-supporter of President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo, a candidate for Jokowi’s new cabinet. “My political career is actually over,” he said in his speech.
Ahok openly admitted that housewives also hate him because of his divorce from Veronica Tan and the second marriage with Puput Nastiti Dewi. “Most people consider me defaming religion, while middle-income people hate my marriage situation, so that’s it. Even (when attending) the church, everybody looked at me as a misguided person,” he said.
Ahok, as you know, was convicted of blasphemy following a speech he made in the Thousand Islands regency back in September 2016. While serving prison term, Ahok filed for divorce from Veronica in January 2018, and hours after released from prison, he married Puput.
So, what to do?
Well, looks like that Ahok will focus in the development of Jangkau, an application to help the poor and needy, bridging them with donors. The app will be launched on August 1st, 2019. Other than that, Ahok plans to start a talk show at MetroTV, which is controlled by Surya Paloh (NasDem leader). “It’s gonna be like Jimmy Falon’s The Tonight Show,” he said.
Could be very political though?
Well, Ahok officially joined PDI-P on January 26, 2019 as a member. With membership card, he is a cadre of PDI-P. He, however, is not anywhere in the party structure.
Power Sharing & Political Compromises
Politicians from members of the ruling coalition resisted to the idea of the opposition party Gerindra joining the coalition. Gerindra itself sent another signal that they’re willing to join the ruling coalition should President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo accepting their input of programs, and accordingly, the President give a power sharing in the cabinet.
The Fights for MPR Speaker
The largest opposition party Gerindra led by the losing presidential candidate Lt. Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto is joining the race to get the position of the Speaker of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR). Earlier, three political parties from President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s ruling coalition—Golkar, PKB, and NasDem—have openly expressed their hopes for the strategic post. Who will eventually get?
The Race to Control Golkar
Three more candidates have publicly declared their preparation to run in the upcoming congress (Munas) of the Golkar Party. But Bambang Soesatyo a.k.a Bamsoet, who is now the Speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR), is still widely believed as the strongest contender to challenge Golkar Chairman Airlangga Hartarto, who is also Minister of Industry.
The Next Military-Police Strategic Job Rotation
Whether or not the Commander of the Indonesian Military (TNI) Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto and the Chief of the National Police (POLRI) General Tito Karnavian will join the next cabinet, and accordingly, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo will appoint their successors, soon there’ll be another round of job rotation that’ll affecting generals in strategic positions in both the military and the police. This is also a chance for the president to consolidate further power in the second term in office.
Anies & His Frequent Overseas Trips
Governor of Jakarta Anies Baswedan has been criticized for his frequent visit to overseas. Latest, he was absent from a limited cabinet meeting led by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo at the State Palace Jakarta, Tuesday (Jul 16) because the governor was still in an overseas trip to United States of America (USA).
Can we have a less political KPK?
The watchdog group Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) continues criticizing the selection of the candidates for the new leaders of the 2019-2023 Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). Latest, they asked a fit and proper test over the candidates to be conducted by the new House of Representatives (DPR) of 2019-2024, not by the current 2014-2019 DPR. But is this request relevant?
Jokowi-Prabowo Alliance
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and Prabowo Subianto finally met last Saturday (Jul 13). Apart from ending months of rivalry, the meeting also triggered more speculations about the possibility of Prabowo’s Gerindra Party to join Jokowi’s ruling coalition, an idea disliked by civil society and some of Prabowo’s hardline supporters. Let’s talk a bit about the risks and the advantages of such alliance.