The Coalition for Change Was Considered to be Hot Late, Did Not Directly "Attack" Jokowi Upon Anies' Declaration of a Presidential Candidate

The Coalition for Change Was Considered to be Hot Late, Did Not Directly "Attack" Jokowi Upon Anies' Declaration of a Presidential Candidate

Political observer from UIN Syarif Hidayatullah, Adi Prayitno, thinks that the Coalition for Change for Unity has been slow in heating up the political engine towards the 2024 elections. 

This is because the coalition formed by the Nasdem Party, the Democratic Party, and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) did not immediately position itself as the opposition when the coalition was formalized. 

"It's hot late. Since it was announced that he was running for the presidential election, Anies and the axis of change have attacked Jokowi's camp and the government's camp," Adi told Kompas.com, Wednesday (7/6/2023). 

According to Adi, the Coalition for Change only appeared to be "attacking" the government when Johnny G Plate, the Secretary General of the Nasdem Party at the time, was recently named a suspect in the BTS project corruption at the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (Kominfo). 

According to him, Nasdem, Democrats and PKS should have immediately shown their teeth to the government when they announced Anies Baswedan as a presidential candidate in October 2022. 

Adi said it was important for the Coalition for Change to emphasize their political position which is at odds with the government. Moreover, if they want to target groups that are anti-Jokowi government. 

“How can the Coalition for Change consolidate groups that have really wanted to seek change. That's why we need a rather aggressive and mature political positioning that must be consolidated and matured by the change camp," he said. 

Adi also assessed that the internal Coalition for Change was not completely solid. The kongsi has repeatedly shown disagreements regarding matters relating to the 2024 elections. 

Most recently, the Democrats did not agree with Nasdem and PKS regarding the timing of the declaration of the vice presidential candidate (cawapres) to accompany Anies. 

The party bearing the star of mercy is also considered to be half-hearted in expressing support for Anies. This can be seen from the lack of Democrat banners and billboards promoting the former Governor of DKI Jakarta as the RI-1 candidate. 

"This Coalition for Change seems half-hearted, especially the Democrats who are actually still hanging their political fate," said Adi. 

Adi suspects that there are still doubts within the Democrats because Anies' vice presidential candidate has not yet been decided. Meanwhile, the Democrats hope that their general chairman, Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono (AHY), will become the RI-2 candidate. 

"The Democrats don't really go all out fighting for Anies as a presidential candidate, maybe because AHY has never been announced as a vice presidential candidate to accompany Anies," Adi said. 

"So this can then explain one of the variables that the axis of change is not completely solid," he said. 

The determination of the suspect Johnny G Plate in the corruption case for the Kominfo base transceiver station (BTS) procurement project has drawn various reactions from the Coalition for Change for Unity. 

The general chairman of the Nasdem Party, Surya Paloh, for example, believes that Johnny G Plate is not involved in the corruption case. Nasdem said prioritizing the principle of the presumption of innocence against Johnny. 

Surya Paloh admitted that he had repeatedly asked Johnny about his involvement in the case. 

“My question is simple, 'Dude, you know I'm the general chairman here, putting all my energy and idealism, time and energy of my mind. One thing I ask of you, to be honest, are you involved or not?" said Surya Paloh at a press conference at the Nasdem Tower, Gondangdia, Menteng, Jakarta, Wednesday (17/5/2023). 

“He (Johnny) said there was no such thing. So, I am confident that he will not actually be dragged into today's situation," he said. 

On the other hand, Surya Paloh expressed his readiness to support the Attorney General's Office (Kejagung) in investigating the case.