Dangdut artist Rhoma Irama has officially declared his support for Prabowo Subianto and Hatta Rajasa, who are backed by the Gerindra Party’s coalition, following his decision to leave the National Awakening Party (PKB) due to personal dissatisfaction.
“I support Prabowo because Indonesia needs a firm leader. Moreover, Indonesia is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), so it needs someone who understands the economy. Hatta is someone who is suitable for that,” Rhoma said during a visit by Prabowo to his residence on Tuesday, as quoted by kompas.com.
The PKB had previously promoted Rhoma as one of its potential presidential candidates, alongside other prominent figures such as former Constitutional Court chief justice Mahfud MD.
Following the recent legislative election, the PKB managed to garner 9.04 percent of the national vote and 8.7 percent, or 47 seats, in the House of Representatives, which was below the 25 percent of the national vote and 20 percent of House seats stipulated in the 2008 Election Law as a minimum threshold for nominating presidential candidates.
The PKB consequently decided to side with the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the NasDem Party in a coalition. Later, the Hanura Party also joined the club, and the parties agreed to name Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and Jusuf Kalla as its presidential and vice-president candidates.
Source/Fuente: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/05/21/rhoma-turns-his-support-to...
