58 islam, politics and change
Figure 3Organisational structure of the pks
The powerful position of the supreme leader generates its own prob-
lems, as it creates an alternative authority and loyalty for party leaders and
members. The authority enables him to bypass organisational procedures
that split the party machinery between loyalty to the organisation and
to the supreme leader. The most infamous case is the dominant position
enjoyed by the party’s general-secretary, Anis Matta, who not only held
the position for three terms because of his closeness to the supreme
leader, but even dared to take on more terms as party president. For
example, he engineered the resignation of the party president, Hidayat
Nur Wahid (pks president 2003–2005), in 2005, under the auspices of
the Shura Assembly.⁶⁶ He also defied Tifatul Sembiring (pks president
2003–2005), ahead in the 2009 election, when he unilaterally established
an ad hoc ‘National Election Winning Team’ headed by himself while
Interview with Yusuf Supendi, Jakarta.