The first task for Aburizal Bakrie (left) will be to mend the deep rifts within Golkar and unify its various factions. (Photo: AFP)

Golkar Captain Bakrie Must Chart a New Course

The epic of Golkar, Indonesia’s most storied political party, has taken another twist. Following a raucous and acrimonious national leadership meeting, the party’s voting members elected Aburizal Bakrie as its chairman for the next six years.

The three-day meeting erupted into an chaotic feud after supporters of the two leading candidates, Aburizal and Surya Paloh, accused each other of buying votes. Indeed, it is certainly no secret that money politics have long played a central role in the internal dealings of Golkar and several other political parties.

Aburizal, who is currently the coordinating minister for people’s welfare and head of the giant Bakrie business group, is no stranger to controversy. He has often drawn criticism and caused awe in equal measure. The businessman-politician faces perhaps his toughest challenge yet in turning Golkar around and rebuilding its tattered image.

Once the dominant political institution in the country under former President Suharto, Golkar is at a major crossroads. It was beaten soundly by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party in this year’s legislative and presidential elections. Golkar came in a distant second to the Democrats in the legislative elections, and its candidates finished a disappointing third in the presidential poll.

Aburizal said he would not position Golkar as an opposition party against the government of President Yudhoyono, who will embark on his second and final five-year term later this month. But he also vowed to make sure that the party remained critical.

His election to the helm of Golkar has only increased concerns that Yudhoyono’s next administration will meet little or no resistance or control from the House.

Aburizal’s first task will be to mend the deep rifts within the party and unify the various factions. From the mammoth monolith that it was under Suharto’s patronage, Golkar has since weakened as a result of infighting. The most recent example is the failure of Aburizal’s predecessor as party chairman, Vice President Jusuf Kalla, to solidify Golkar’s support for his presidential bid.

Aburizal will need to outline a clear vision for the party and chart a new direction. He will need to attract fresh, young blood to the party and revitalize its sense of serving the nation. To do this, he must put the party first and resist the temptation to serve his personal interests.

In essence, Aburizal will have to exercise leadership and heal the deep wounds within the party. He has a golden opportunity to spark a new beginning, but if he travels along the same path as his recent predecessors, Golkar will move slowly but surely toward irrelevance on the national political stage.

Your View

See Result