The people are left guessing the initial "M" that Muslim-based United Development Party (PPP) Chairman Romahurmuziy had leaked to public several days ago amid the fact that there are several figures, whose names start with "M".
Among the figures, whose names start with "M" and have frequently been mentioned by the country`s mainstream media and social media as Widodo`s potential running mates, are, among others, Ma`ruf Amin, Moeldoko and Mahfud MD.
The three names share a relatively-similar chance of being chosen by the incumbent president as his running mate by considering their respective quality of leadership as well as professional and political experiences.
The name of Moeldoko, for instance, is not merely mentioned frequently by both mainstream and social media but is also campaigned by so many people in different parts of the country.
On July 30, several hundreds of volunteers of an organization called "Our Future" (MDK) gathered in the West Java city of Sukabumi to declare that they supported Joko Widodo for being reelected in next year`s presidential election and nominated retired General Moeldoko as his running mate.
"Jokowi and Moeldoko are a pair of ideal figures for leading this nation, considering their proven leadership experiences," MDK Chairman Gunawan Saputra told local journalists.
In Saputra`s point of view, Moeldoko, former commander of the Indonesian Defense Forces and currently Presidential Chief of Staff, was the most appropriate vice presidential candidate for Widodo thanks to his integrity, firmness, and capability.
"Appointing Moeldoko as Widodo`s running mate will strengthen the incumbent president`s electability," he argued.
Mahfud MD himself is also a figure with lots of experiences in the fields of governance, constitutional court, higher-educational institution, and influential organizations, including the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and the Islamic Students Alumni Association (KAHMI).
During the former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid administration, Mahfud MD, widely known as a professor of the Yogyakarta-based Indonesian Islamic University`s (UII) Faculty of Law, was a defence minister.
Apart from the socio-political and professional backgrounds of those figures, President Joko Widodo and the coalition parties supporting his efforts to grab a victory in the 2019 Presidential Election had selected Ma`ruf Amin.
As the cadre of the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDIP), the incumbent head of state, commonly known as his nickname Jokowi, his presidential nomination is backed by the Megawati Soekarnoputri-led party and eight other political parties.
The eight parties are the PPP, Golkar Party, National Democratic Party (Nasdem), National Awakening Party (PKB), The United Indonesia Party (Perindo), the Indonesian Justice and Unity Partys (PKPI), and Indonesia Solidarity Party (PSI).
The leaders of these coalition parties had approved the final decision that Jokowi had made, and officially announced at Plataran Restaurant, Menteng, Central Jakarta, on Thursday evening.
In order to enable the people to know the reasons behind Ma`ruf Amin`s appointment, the PPP leader, Romahurmuziy, mentioned three main reasons. One of which is related to the fact that combining religiosity and nationalism has become the Unitary State of the Republic Indonesia`s powerful force for decades.
It is obviously observed from the era of Megawati Soekarnoputri-Hamzah Haz, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono-Jusuf Kalla, as well as the current era of Joko Widodo-Jusuf Kalla.
Romahurmuziy further argued that the second reason is related to the fact that the Indonesian people have become a divided society since the 2014 presidential election and three simultaneous regional elections, particularly Jakarta`s regional election.
Referring to this factual reality, the leaders of the coalition parties who support Joko Widodo`s reelection discussed it with the incumbent president in the search of an appropriate figure for his running mate, he said.
The appropriate figure should reflect the quality of religiosity, and President Joko Widodo and the coalition party leaders came up with Ma`ruf Amin because the Indonesian Council of Ulemas is believed to be a figure that can also minimize the spread of hate speeches in social media.
The third reason is closely related to Ma`ruf Amin`s experiences in both political and economic fields. Amin, currently member of the Presidential Advisory Board, was a former member of the PPP faction at the Jakarta legislative body. He is also a rais am (supreme leader) of Nahdlatul Ulama, Indonesia`s largest Islamic organization.
Ma`ruf Amin is also knowledgeable about economy because he is a member of the Indonesian Council of Sharia Economy and the National Sharia Economic Council.
"By considering all these facts, Ma`ruf Amin is the most appropriate figure," he said.
Many political analysts have predicted that Chief Patron of the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Prabowo Subianto may again become Jokowi`s toughest rival in the 2019 presidential race.
He has, so far, been viewed as the only figure, whose name has officially been supported by the leaders of his coalition parties, including the Muslim-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and National Mandate Party (PAN).
On the same day at 11.30 pm West Indonesia Time, Prabowo Subianto announced Sandiaga Uno would be his running mate to challenge the Joko Widodo-Ma`ruf Amin pair, and they would register at the General Election Commission (KPU) after the Friday prayer (Aug.10)
Reporter: Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Bustanuddin
Copyright © ANTARA 2018
