Jakarta, NU Online
Lawmaker Sutan Bhatoegana’s apology to the family of the late former president Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid could benefit his Democratic Party, a political expert says.<>

Sutan apologized to Gus Dur’s family on Thursday after saying that the former president was impeached in 2001 due to his involvement in the so-called Bruneigate and Buloggate corruption scandals.

“The move will surely benefit the Democratic Party in the future. It gives an additional point to the ruling party,” Siti Zuhro of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) said in Jakarta.

According to Siti, Sutan’s move may bring a considerable number of votes to the Democratic Party in the upcoming election.

Various surveys throughout the year revealed that the ruling party will loose a large portion of votes in the 2014 election. The surveys have stated that the public has started to distrust the party because many of its politicians have been implicated in graft cases.

“Sutan’s move could drive Gus Dur’s followers to vote for the Democratic Party,” Siti said.

Editor : Sudarto Murtaufiq