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Jakarta Post

The hidden Jokowi effect: Redefining politics and power

Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has finally won the presidential election

Salvatore Simarmata (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Thu, July 31, 2014

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The hidden Jokowi effect: Redefining politics and power

Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo has finally won the presidential election.

We are confident that the voice of the people is the living spirit of democracy, as his victory revealed, but as a nation we can learn even more from this phenomenon to ensure that Indonesia'€™s democracy matures.

There is a hidden Jokowi effect here that we should cherish.

Many said the Jokowi effect did not work in the legislative election, even though the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) finished first.

Conversely, others have said it represented the crystallization of the Jokowi effect, arguing that the PDI-P could have finished down the pecking order had it not selected Jokowi to contest the presidential election.

Instead, I would like to propose the real Jokowi effect, which comprises a number of factors.

First, the effect on political parties. Over the last 10 years, political parties have become the elite'€™s machine to collect funds, in or outside government.

Strategic decisions have mainly been made by the leaders themselves, including decisions on who will run for the presidency. They hold the classic, intoxicating belief that party leaders should be presidential candidates, regardless of their leadership abilities. Parties have merely been features of an oligarchic system.

The Jokowi effect has changed the way parties select leaders '€” from a party-based line to meritocracy principles, despite the social, political and personal backgrounds of the individuals concerned.

Great leaders are precious assets to their parties, as voters only support parties that promote great leaders. Political parties that do not comply with this perish, as happened to the Golkar Party and Democratic Party.

Second, the effect has had an impact on the essence of a leader. In the past, Indonesians have tended to associate leaders with physical appeal, where boldness and firmness are measured by a booming voice and angry-looking face when delivering a speech. What we have learned in the last 10 years is that these standards have proved to be totally wrong.

Jokowi has introduced another dimension to what it means to be a good leader. His image encourages us to see competent, bold and firm leaders as those who are eager to solve problems in a prompt, thoughtful and democratic way.

Third is the nature of power. Our democracy has been practiced based on the doctrine that power is the ability to control others where control means success, either in the context of political contests, government policy making, in the House of Representatives or in political parties, where your claim to power is justified by whether you can defeat others.

Jokowi has redefined this outdated mindset by giving a new face to power.

The power that he tries to project to the people is the ability to solve problems through communicative rationality in the best interests of the people.

For him, power is not an end in itself but is the connective tissue that brings people together to solve problems for the benefit of all.

Fourth, Jokowi has had an impact on politics as a whole. Politics has been so elitist, exclusive and corrupt, with a rent-seeking culture. The causes are many, from leadership neglect to the demise of idealism among elites.

I believe that with the advent of '€œJokowism'€, politics has and will continue to change the way Indonesians perceive politics.

Jokowi'€™s rise gives people a new definition of politics. He has a genuine spirit to practice politics in our democracy, which will attract more good people to join politics for altruistic reasons.

Politics is no longer about the collective greed of rent-seeking elites. Politics is the right way to do good for the people of the nation.

These effects have triggered massive participation from society and voluntary political activism from younger generations.

However, opposition to change will always be there. Resistance to this new way of doing politics should be anticipated. It is propagated by elites who have been benefiting from long-established, corrupt political habits and structures.

The challenges ahead are expected to come from inside and outside of government, which calls for stringent measures.

From inside government, the aphorism that power tends to corrupt can always materialize, not in terms of Jokowi himself, but in terms of his subordinates or bureaucrats at any levels of the government who could ruin his clean, firm reputation.

The wrongdoings of his aides at any level could slow the change he tries to bring. Jokowi needs good people for the right positions.

On the other hand, threats from outside government will mostly take the form of bribery and business interventions in policy making, either for personal and collective benefit or to delegitimize the government.

Yet, the biggest trap for the next government is its inaction when something goes wrong, when leaders will just want to keep their hands clean of complex social issues at the grassroots.

May the next government be supported by professional ministers with proven integrity and who are capable of doing politics in the way that Jokowi has shown us.

_______________________

The writer is a political communication researcher and lecturer at Atma Jaya Catholic University of Indonesia in Jakarta.

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