TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Our disillusionment with politics

This country is clearly passing through a crisis of political legitimacy

Donny Syofyan (The Jakarta Post)
Padang
Thu, March 15, 2012

Share This Article

Change Size

Our disillusionment with politics

T

his country is clearly passing through a crisis of political legitimacy. People in increasing numbers do not trust their government or the political parties.

In many cases they despise them. Survey after survey shows that among all strata of educated people there is now a widespread lack of belief or confidence in the ability of political leaders and the governing class to make decisions on their behalf.

As transparency has increased and the Internet has uncovered the workings of government and politicians to public scrutiny, the old belief and faith that governments somehow possessed superior wisdom and represented the true will of the people has evaporated. People are starting to seek alternatives.

For instance, based on the survey conducted between Feb. 25 and March 5, which questioned 2,418 people, the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) found that Golkar remained the most popular party with about 17.7 percent of those questioned ready to vote for it if elections were held now.

The opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) garnered 13.6 percent while the ruling Democratic Party drew the support of only 13.4 percent. The National Democrat (NasDem) Party continued to rise drastically, outpolling all Muslim-oriented parties – The National Awakening Party (PKB), the United Development Party (PPP) and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) – which only garnered 5.3, 5.3 and 4.2 percent of the votes respectively.

Recently Indonesia’s political dynamics and democracy have been closely bound to political imagery. Political image really plays a pivotal role in determining political parties, legislative candidates, presidential candidates, vice presidential candidates, mayoral candidates, regent candidates and many others.

There is a tendency that an engineered political imagery begins with the announcement of the results of surveys conducted by various pollsters. A lot of political parties and politicians attempt to publicize the survey results in the mass media – electronic, print or online media – placing them in news and advertorial packages. The surveys are mentioned as including quantifiable scientific methods with the intention of winning voters’ allegiance.

In the lead up to the 2014 general elections, it is likely that the competition between pollsters will become fierce. Some pollsters have been preoccupied with reviewing their methods, claiming that the results of their surveys are instrumental in building up democracy in this country. People are now presented with a great variety of pollsters; among others the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), the Indonesian Survey Circle (also abbreviated as LSI), Indo Barometer, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Indonesia Survey Network (JSI).

Due to different hypotheses used, the pollsters release different conclusions with numerous implications. They may weaken the government performance, strengthen particular parties in the eyes of the public or give credit to the effectiveness of government programs, especially directly enjoyed programs.

The reality is undeniable. Political imagery through surveys will indirectly determine people’s views or thoughts on the country’s democratic dynamics. The question is whether the results represent a general public view; the basic desire of the people.

When asked, survey organizers would say that everything depends on the methods used. Actually, such a standard reply hides behind the conservative argument that a survey is always conducted based on scientific methods involving determination of samples, distribution of fairly representative respondents and other seemingly intellectual criteria.

Regarding the survey results, it is important to note how the public regard them. Will they be swept away by such endless and different survey results and political imagery? Politicians and survey organizers frequently believe that people are already clued in, capable of assessing and deciding the best options, and able to differentiate between friends or foes.

Much to our surprise, this idea is repeatedly delivered by the same figures and observers. Asserting that survey results determine policy on one side and how people vote on the other is misleading.

Irrespective of the questionable methods, people should not get trapped in the implied construction of the results as a whole. This is particularly true for surveys funded by interested parties. Hence, anyone seeking to understand the aspirations of ordinary citizens needs to encourage people to speak honestly without any pressure from vested interests.

Students, especially university students, may be relied on to play the role of monitoring and asserting their real voices in spite of the fact that some students have been co-opted by particular political parties. Students are required to respond to Indonesia’s democracy with more open-mindedness. On the part of society, they should remain critical of the status quo.

Representing the floating mass of voters, the public need to determine their principles and attitudes based on their basic needs and proper yardsticks. They must strive to determine whether or not those basic needs are met; whether or not economic hardship is still widely perceived and scattered; or whether or not public services are running properly. Opinion poll results must continue to serve as guides, but not the deciding factors.

The writer lectures at the School of Cultural Sciences, Andalas University, Padang.

{

Your Opinion Matters

Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.