... We are not yet thinking of using the voting mechanism to decide it because we give priority to consensus first... "
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The United Development Party (PPP) has not yet reached a consensus on coalition with other political parties on the first day of its leadership meeting on Saturday.

"We have not yet reached consensus on the political party with which we are going to coalesce. We are not yet thinking of using the voting mechanism to decide it because we give priority to consensus first," PPP Secretary General Romahurmuziy said on Sunday.

He stated that PPP had not yet achieved a consensus on the coalition issue because there were still differences of opinions among PPP members. In addition, PPP General Chairman Suryadharma Ali was still absent in the meeting.

PPP Deputy Chairman Emron Rangkapi said Surayadharma Ali had not yet attended the sessions of Saturday's leadership meeting because he was still busy in meeting with a number of PPP branch (DPW) leaders to formulate common views with regard to the coalition.

"For the time being, we put off the leadership meeting while waiting for the presence of the general chairman. We have assigned several cadres to communicate with him who is now trying to find and formulate differences among DPW leaders," Emron asserted.

He added that PPP was still discussing the correct time to resume the leadership meeting. There are three choices, namely Sunday evening, Monday evening or Tuesday evening.

PPP held Saturday's leadership meeting to decide its choice on political party to which it should give its support in the upcoming July 9 presidential elections.

PPP has at least three names of presidential candidates being mentioned in its internal cadres, namely Joko Widodo of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), Prabowo Subianto of the Greater Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra) and Aburizal Bakrie of the Golongan Karya (Golkar) Party.

The General Elections Commission (KPU) announced on Friday night the results of the April 9, 2014 legislative elections, where PPP secured only 6.53 percent of the voter turnout and was listed in the ninth place.

The PDIP, Golkar and Gerindra were ranked first, second and third with a vote gain of 18.95 percent, 14.75 percent and 11.81 percent respectively.

Editor: Ade P Marboen
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