JAKARTA (Yosefardi) – Three days into the upcoming national meeting of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), various political observers highly suggest the party led by former President Megawati Soekarnoputri to declare popular Jakarta Governor Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo as president candidate for next year’s presidential race.
Talking in the Monday’s discussion held in the Parliament building, Ikrar Nusa Bakti, political observer from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), viewed that Jokowi’s presidential bid will definitely help PDI-P to boost its approval rating and winning the next year’s legislative election.
“If (Jokowi’s presidential bid) would be delayed, moreover waiting for the results of next year’s legislative election, it will be too late and could reduce PDI-P’s votes,” said Ikrar, who is also lecturer at the respected University of Indonesia.
“If Jokowi wouldn’t take a stand in next year’s presidential race (as president candidate), it will add the list of error decisions taken by PDI-P,” Ikrar added.
Previously, other political observers also voiced similar suggestions to PDI-P to name and declare Jokowi’s presidential bid immediately.
Joko J Prihatmoko, political observer from Wahid Hasyim University in Semarang (Central Java), said that Jokowi’s approval rating is unstoppable, including outside of Java.
In related progress, Jokowi , for once again, has been placed in the top of the list of 2014’s president candidates according to the latest survey released by Lembaga Klimatologi Politik (LKP).
Last week, a survey from Kompas, the largest newspaper in the country, also named Jokowi as the most potential president candidate with approval rating reached until 32.5%, far above other contenders, including Megawati, Prabowo Subianto and Aburizal Bakrie.
The PDI-P’s national meeting, as scheduled, will take place in a hotel in Ancol, North Jakarta on 6-8 September 2013. The Mercure Ancol could be the place of the meeting as the party had held its latest national meeting there in February 2013. (haryantos@yosefardi.biz)