Dangerous wish to extend presidential term limit

Dinna Wisnu
Indonesian representative to the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights

PREMIUM

Jakarta / Mon, December 16, 2019 / 04:59 pm

Dangerous wish to extend presidential term limit

The plenary meeting of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2019, in Jakarta. (JP/Seto Wardhana)

Politicians are testing the waters over an initiative to change the presidential term limit. Some have proposed a single term of six or seven years; others called for three terms of four years or no limit for a five-year term as long as the president is not elected back-to-back. The idea is to enable the president to complete their development programs. Such an assumption is speculative and will put Indonesian democracy at risk. The longer the presidential term of office, the higher the possibility for development to face danger. The rationale is the following. First, extending the term of office would lead to a greater concentration of power in one person. This is even more pertinent under a presidential system of government, which already places the center of power in the hands of the president as a person. The presidential system is less flexible in dealing with dynamic politica...