Gita may resign to focus on Dems primary

JAKARTA. Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan said he was ready to resign from his ministerial position so he could focus on being nominated by the ruling Democratic Party (PD) for a presidential ticket.

“I think I won’t do something that potentially has a conflict of interest,” Gita told reporters at the State Palace, responding to statements from PD executives suggesting he resign from his position in the Cabinet should he run in the primary.

Gita, however, said he would only make a decision regarding his Cabinet post after the presidential primary committee issued its final regulation. “I will certainly follow the rules of the game,” he said.

Earlier, PD executive chairman Syarief Hasan said Yudhoyono had hinted that ministers who planned to join the primary must quit their posts so their performances would not be compromised.

“But we have not decided to set out the rules yet. The President will have the final say because he has the prerogative when it comes to what he will do with his Cabinet,” said Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Minister Syarief.

So far, Gita is the only minister in Yudhoyono’s Cabinet who has publicly-stated his intention to run in the primary, slated for September this year.

Party deputy chairman Max Sopacua said Gita should resign from his Cabinet position as he would not be able to juggle between sitting in the Cabinet and joining the primary.

“If you want to run in the primary, you will have a busy campaign schedule because you must raise people’s awareness about yourself,” he said.

The leadership of the PD also revealed that 18 individuals had been selected to sit on the primary’s committee.

The committee would be chaired by former religious affairs minister Maftuh Basyuni. Maftuh is currently serving as chairman of the government’s Migrant Workers Task Force.

“He is a non-partisan figure so we can pin our hopes on his impartiality in leading the committee,” Syarief said.

Also sitting as members on the committee are University of Indonesia’s political communication expert Effendi Ghazali, PD spokesman and lawyer Hinca Pandjaitan, member of the House of Representatives Andi Timo Pangeran, member of the party’s board of patrons Lt. Gen. (ret.) Suaidi Marasabessy, and party executive Indrawati Sukadis.

The PD is expected to hold a presidential primary in September, claiming that such a mechanism will allow external candidates to join the selection process.

Potential candidates who have expressed their interest in joining the convention include House Speaker Marzuki Alie, Regional Representatives Council Speaker Irman Gusman, former Army chief of staff Gen. (ret.) Pramono Edhie Wibowo and Gita.

Other figures are former Constitutional Court chief justice Mahfud MD, former Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Gen. (ret.) Endriartono Sutarto, Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister/former TNI commander Marshall (ret.) Djoko Suyanto, State-Owned Enterprises Minister Dahlan Iskan and National Agency for Overseas Labor Placement and Protection (BNP2TKI) head Jumhur Hidayat.

The latest addition to the list of aspirants is former youth and sports minister Hayono Isman.

“I have told the President in person about my intention to run in the primary. It’s now up to the party’s Supreme Assembly to decide on my nomination,” said Hayono, who is also a lawmaker representing the PD. (Bagus BT Saragih and Margareth S. Aritonang)