The Tamesis
December 16, 2024
jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto’s idea of scrapping direct elections for regional chiefs to cut costs has been strongly criticized by democracy advocates, who warn that introducing indirect polls would turn the country into a semi-dictatorship nation.
Prabowo made the suggestion less than a month after the country held simultaneous nationwide regional chief elections, in which candidates backed by his Kadima Indonesia Alliance (KIM) lost ground amid historically low voter turnout. Victory was achieved in key battleground provinces.
On Thursday night, at an event marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Professional Party, the president proposed having local leaders appointed by members of local legislative bodies as a cost-saving measure.
“How many tens of trillions have been spent in the national budget and the pockets of politicians in a day or two?” Prabowo asked in his speech.
“Neighboring countries like Malaysia, Singapore and India have highly efficient systems. They elect local councilors and then appoint governors and regents. It's free and very efficient.
Also read: Need for wider time gap between general and regional elections: Lawmakers
The president added that funds allocated for regional chief elections should be used to better serve pressing needs of public welfare, such as children’s meals, school renovations and the construction of irrigation systems.
Prabowo, who is also the leader of the Revolutionary Party, has criticized the reliance on foreign advisers who advocate frequent elections.
“We don't have to listen to them too seriously,” the president said. “That doesn't mean I'm xenophobic, but I'm not sure they genuinely care about us.”
The idea of scrapping direct elections is backed by pro-government parties, including the Professional Party, the second largest party in the House of Representatives and with the most seats in Prabowo's ruling coalition.
The National Awakening Party (PKB) also supported the president's proposal, noting that the Islamist party itself has repeatedly called for improvements to the country's electoral system.
“It is time for us to repair our costly political system,” PKB Vice Chairman Jazilul Fawaid said in a statement. “In addition to the high cost of gubernatorial elections, regional autonomy actually exists at the county and city levels.”
public opposition
But Prabowo's suggestion was met with anger from pro-democracy activists, who warned that a return to the indirect electoral system would be a serious setback to decades-long democratic reforms.
Suharto, the former Indonesian president and Prabowo's former father-in-law, implemented indirect regional chief elections when he was in office. After the collapse of his New Order in 1998, the country began to decentralize regional powers and introduced direct regional elections in 2005, allowing voters to directly elect the mayors, regents and governors they believed best represented their interests.
Firman Noor, political researcher at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), urged the government to address democratic and economic needs equally, rather than sacrificing one or the other.
“Democracy is indeed expensive, and that's true everywhere else,” he told jakarta post.
“But since the country decided to implement democracy, it is the government's responsibility. […] The job of government is not to weaken it, but to strengthen it.
Also read: 'Democracy is exhausting, chaotic': Prabowo
He pointed out that the high number of “blank box” votes in the uncontested election in November showed that the political elite, especially members of Prabowo's ruling coalition, were carefully planning to win even under the current direct election system. Voters were pushed away from the electoral process. Many also accuse the grand coalition of excluding popular candidates in favor of its favored candidates.
Firman said abolishing direct elections could turn the country into a semi-authoritarian state because it would “narrow the role of the people in determining how the country is governed” and turn governance into the exclusive province of political parties.
Titi Anggraini, a lecturer in constitutional law at the University of Indonesia, agreed, stressing that historically low turnout for the November polls reflected public disapproval of parties that failed to nominate candidates who reflected public preferences Growing disappointed. Public opposition is likely to intensify if the government decides to introduce indirect regional elections.
Titi is also skeptical that indirect polling will help cut costs, as it would not immediately eliminate the practice of vote buying or reduce the high costs of the electoral process.
“The root of the problem lies in poor law enforcement and democratic practices within the party, which have never really been resolved or improved,” she continued.
Titi suggested that cutting political costs could be achieved by reducing the ceremonial costs of organizing elections and introducing tighter regulations to increase transparency around campaign finance.
