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COMMENTARY: When noise speaks louder than actions, masses left forgotten
Key indicators suggest Jokowi’s constituents are not better off than they were under the previous administration — a recipe for losing real support.
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With the recent disturbances, many wonder whether President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s focus on reform is intact. (Antara/Rosa Panggabean)
P
olitical soothsayers did not see it coming, but for the past five months, and probably for the next couple of months as well, much of the nation’s energy has been sapped by politics.
With the recent disturbances, many wonder whether President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s focus on reform is intact, particularly if incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama, his confidant and the embodiment of his influence in Jakarta, loses the reelection next week.
For Jokowi and his band of supporters — the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Golkar Party — losing Jakarta may not be an option as their chances to gain votes in the 2019 general election would dwindle.
As the center of political and economic gravity, Jakarta, after all, is a reflection of the entire nation. Winning Jakarta will ensure votes for the parties and stronger positioning for the incumbent President.
Losing Jakarta would probably result in bickering as Jokowi’s rivals could demand concessions in exchange for political stability as they perceive the President as having lost his allure.
However, what lurks within the grassgroots may cast a more devastating impact than the political maneuver by the elites.
Key indicators suggest Jokowi’s constituents are not better off than they were under the previous administration — a recipe for losing real support.
