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SBY set to hit the campaign trail
Final countdown: Volunteers foldballots in Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta, on Tuesday
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Final countdown: Volunteers foldballots in Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta, on Tuesday. The General Elections Commission (KPU) is racing against time to distribute election materials and equipment. (JP/Jerry Adiguna) (KPU) is racing against time to distribute election materials and equipment. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)
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span class="inline inline-none">Final countdown: Volunteers foldballots in Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta, on Tuesday. The General Elections Commission (KPU) is racing against time to distribute election materials and equipment. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, in his capacity as the Democratic Party chairman, is set to join other leaders from the party to go on the campaign trail ahead of the April 9 legislative election, in a bid to help salvage the party's chances in the poll. Some ministers in his Cabinet would also campaign for their respective political parties, State Secretary Sudi Silalahi said on Monday.
Yudhoyono had so far only planned to use weekends for campaign activities, Democratic Party deputy chairman Max Sopacua said. But Sudi indicated that the President might consider taking official leave as well.
'The President has the right to campaign. He is also able to take leave if he wants to,' Sudi added.
Presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha would not confirm Yudhoyono's intention to take leave to campaign: 'As of today, the President has not submitted any leave requests for campaign activity.'
The President has scheduled official visits to several regencies and cities in East Java and Central Java from March 11 to 18, followed by visits to Palembang in South Sumatra and some other regions on the island, as well as cities and regencies in Kalimantan from March 19 to 28.
Julian, however, refused to comment on whether Yudhoyono would use the weekends during these visits to campaign, as the open campaign period only begins on March 16.
The leadership of the Democratic Party's South Sumatra chapters, however, have confirmed that they expect Yudhoyono to attend campaign events in the province next week.
'We have been arranging our agenda so that our party's top campaigners, including Yudhoyono, [House of Representatives speaker] Marzuki Alie, [senior lawmaker] Ruhut Sitompul and [party secretary-general and Yudhoyono's son] Edhie Baskoro Yudhoyono can participate in the campaign in Palembang,' the secretary of the Democrat's South Sumatra chapter Adi Rasyidi, said as quoted by Antara.
Unlike Yudhoyono, some ministers have confirmed that they would campaign for their parties on work days, Sudi said. 'We have been processing leave applications from several ministers,' he said.
Among the ministers, according to Sudi, were Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa, who is also National Mandate Party (PAN) chairman; Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Minister Syariefuddin Hasan, who is also Democratic Party executive chairman; Transportation Minister EE Mangindaan, who is also head of the Party's council of patrons; and Coordinating People's Welfare Minister Agung Laksono, who is also Golkar Party deputy chairman.
Agung said on Monday that he had planned to apply for a week of leave to campaign for his party.
Max said the Democratic Party had also been recruiting non-Party members to campaign for the party. He, however, refused to specify who.
As many as 16 out of the 34 ministers in Yudhoyono's Cabinet are politicians, and five of them are from the Democratic Party. Analysts have expressed concerns that the government's performance could be compromised if they neglected state duties to campaign during the official period of March 16 to April 5.
In regions, dozens of local leaders have also been tapped by their respective political parties to hit the campaign trail, a move that may see regional governance suffer.
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), for example, has named six governors to campaign for the party at the national level. The six governors are Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo of Jakarta, Agustin Teras Narang of Central Kalimantan, Ganjar Pranowo of Central Java, Cornelis MH of West Kalimantan and Sjachroedin ZP of Lampung, as well as acting Banten Governor Rano Karno.
Dozens of other PDI-P members ' deputy governors, mayors and deputy mayors, as well as regents and deputy regents ' have also been selected by the party to hit the campaign trail.
The Golkar Party has also reportedly chosen dozens of its regional leaders to campaign at the national and provincial level. In South Sulawesi alone, at least 15 mayors and regents have been registered as campaigners, according to the party's official website, partaigolkar.or.id. The party is aiming for a clean sweep of all of the provinces' 24 municipalities and regencies.
The General Elections Commission (KPU) has stated that all 12 parties competing in the legislative election must register their campaigners at least three days before March 16. Regional leaders must obtain leave permission from Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi if they want to attend campaign events during working days, says the KPU.
Although the KPU has set clear restrictions for regional leaders using state facilities while campaigning, political analyst Boni Hargens said it would be impossible for them to totally abstain from using state facilities.
'For example, transportation and meal costs could always be used while campaigning. Their adjutants, who are civil servants, usually travel with the leaders during campaigning,' he said.
Boni suggested that all regional leaders, as well as Cabinet members, be banned from serving as campaigners to reduce the risk of citizens being abandoned by their leaders and to ensure that the relevant administrations worked properly during the campaign season.
