Indonesian presidential favorite Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has picked a respected Cabinet member as his running mate for the July 5 election, officials said yesterday, dealing a blow to President Megawati Sukarnoputri.
Social welfare minister Jusuf Kalla would partner Yudhoyono in the country's presidential election, said Akbar Tandjung, chairman of Golkar, the party of ousted autocrat Suharto.
PHOTO: EPA
"This morning, he said he will team up with Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for the presidential poll," Tandjung said, but brushed off suggestions the move would hurt Golkar.
Kalla was one of several candidates for the Golkar ticket and Megawati had also been courting him as a running mate.
Megawati's Indonesia Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) is running second to Golkar with about two-thirds of the ballots counted from the April 5 parliamentary election.
Kalla is expected to follow Yudhoyono's example and quit her Cabinet in the next few days.
Yudhoyono was Megawati's chief security minister until he resigned last month. He has since surged to become presidential favorite.
The new president and vice president will not be sworn in until Oct. 20, raising questions over the cohesion of Indonesia's government in the coming months, especially if more key ministers quit to pursue their political ambitions.
Kalla met Tandjung yesterday and announced his withdrawal from Golkar's contest to choose a presidential candidate. Kalla declined to answer questions about Yudhoyono and said he would hold a news conference later on the matter.
Yudhoyono has not commented either, although the official Antara news agency quoted him as saying Kalla would join his ticket.
Golkar is leading in the parliamentary election with 21 percent of the vote, followed by Megawati's PDI-P with 19.5 percent. Golkar is expected to widen its lead as more votes are counted from outlying areas, where it has a traditional base in the world's most populous Muslim nation.
But the big established parties are discovering that a well-oiled party machine, a key factor in the parliamentary poll, might not be a match for personal popularity when the country conducts its first, direct presidential election.
While Kalla is not expected to win nomination at Golkar's convention to be held today and tomorrow over several other stronger party cadres, including Tandjung, he has been one of the best performers in Megawati's cabinet.
Kalla has solid Muslim credentials and played a key role halting religious violence in Indonesia's east in recent years.
He is also a leading businessman from his home base in eastern Sulawesi island, complementing Yudhoyono, who comes from the main island of Java and who has strength on security issues.
Political analysts expect Megawati will be left trying to strike a deal with Vice President Hamzah Haz, or Hasyim Muzadi, head of the country's biggest moderate Muslim group in her search for a running mate.
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