Your comments on the walkout of Democratic Party legislators from the House of Representatives'€™ plenary session early Friday that put an end to the direct election of regional leaders as the majority of legislators, mobilized by the Red-and-White Coalition, preferred regional leaders be elected by the local legislative councils:

I have no comment, except a sad feeling.

Eddy Arjuna Zainy

The Democrats made their decision to walk out from the House plenary session and smart voters consider that they tarnished one of the products of reformation, the direct election of regional leaders.

Sinaga Harbili

I once said that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would be remembered more as a failed leader. His party'€™s high-ranking officials have been the most corrupt. He hasn'€™t done anything to stop them and yet this time he allows his deeply goofy legislators to walk out of the room.

This act, in my point of view, will no doubt change the direction of this country from being a democracy to returning to an old-fashioned style, which as we all know singles out every citizen'€™s right to choose their leaders.

Yudhoyono deliberately let his lawmakers in the legislature walk out so the rest of them could pass the stupid new election rule.

He realizes very well if regional leaders are elected directly, then no Democrats officials would get elected as the majority of people already know those greedy-for-money fools.

But, general elections through councilors would definitely grant his party'€™s officials indefinite power as they can just commit bribery of legislators. And this is what we call, '€œThe political sins of the Democratic Party'€.

John Berkhmans

Yudhoyono'€™s one potential legacy was that he had '€œentrenched democracy'€. But he has betrayed Indonesian
democracy.

This is the final act of a cowardly politician who, in the end, was not able to control his own Cabinet, party or even relatives.

SBY was another failure of a President.

Lasem Benny

Stop being so nasty to that nice Mr. SBY! And stop calling him all those bad names!

You can see on a report that it was all Dems faction chairwoman Nurhayati'€™s fault.

That nice Mr. SBY had nothing to do with it at all.

Terry McAsee

Where is the outcry on the TV stations? How does one communicate to the masses the enormity of this decision with sufficient outrage and clarity to make them understand?

If that is not indeed possible then all the ranting amongst the intellectual people who post on these forums will have the same effect as throwing a snowball into hell.

Indonesia is doomed unless this law is overturned.

How many of the legislators who voted for this law have already been rejected by the electorate at the April elections and will form no part of the new assembly?

How such a major law could be put through the legislative process in the dying days of a government defies belief - only in Indonesia and other basically corrupt legislative systems could it happen.

Unless the 82 percent who are said to oppose this law have the guts to stand up and be counted there will be only one outcome. Welcome back the New Order and goodbye Indonesian democracy.

TTB

I just hope this will open Indonesian people'€™s eyes on what the Red-and-White Coalition really is: the Golkar Party, Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and their cronies. Who can still believe they work for the people now?

Benam

Yes, I absolutely agree with your observation that it is rather strange that a set of outgoing lawmakers were allowed to vote on such a crucial bill. The government had actually been warned a couple of months ago not to vote on any crucial bills and policies before the new administration takes over, but what do they care as long as it serves their personal interests?

I do indeed hope that it will at the earliest convenience be contested at the Constitutional Court.

Max

Topic of the day

Opposition to control legislative institutions

The Constitutional Court'€™s decision against a judicial review on the Legislative Institution Law (MD3) on Monday allows the Red-and-White Coalition to decide the leaders of legislative institutions. This marks another setback for president-elect Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo'€™s coalition, which was defeated over regional elections. What are your thoughts?

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