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Civil society piles pressure on parties to launch House probe
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No smoke without fire: Protesters from various groups burn tires as they rally outside the House of Representatives on March 3, 2024 to support the House’s inquiry into alleged election fraud. (Antara/Galih Pradipta)
Civil society organizations are urging political parties to exercise their right to an inquiry by launching a House of Representatives probe into allegations of election fraud, which have continued to gain traction less than two weeks before the General Elections Commission (KPU) is due to announce the official winners.
An alliance of some 50 activists, members of civil groups and experts, sent on Saturday a letter to five political parties that backed the rivals of presumptive presidential winner Prabowo Subianto, calling on them to launch the House inquiry into what they described as “strong indications” of fraud surrounding last month’s presidential election.
While the letter did not detail the allegations of fraud, some experts and activists have since the campaign season accused President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration of using state resources to benefit Prabowo and his running mate, Jokowi’s eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka.
Following the Feb. 14 vote and throughout the vote-tabulation process, posters on social media and Prabowo’s rival camps have also claimed to have found evidence of voter intimidation and inflated tabulation figures for the Gerindra Party chairman, ultimately leading to a call from presidential candidate Ganjar Pranowo for a House inquiry.
The group said in its letter that suspicions of fraud could erode Indonesia’s democracy and undermine public faith in the incoming government and House members, if they were to be left unchecked.
“Political parties [...] should urge the House of Representatives to use its inquiry rights to investigate the facts behind the widespread allegations of election fraud. [This effort] is intended to safeguard the results of the 2024 elections and as a response to public concern,” the group said.
Ganjar’s Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), along with the pro-Anies Baswedan Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the National Awakening Party (PKB), called for an inquiry during a plenary session last week.
