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Young politicians call for calm ahead of election results announcement
With the announcement of the final results of the election expected next week, young and rising politicians have called on members of society, including the country’s elites, to uphold peace and unity so as to prevent any potential postelection clashes at the grassroots level
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span>With the announcement of the final results of the election expected next week, young and rising politicians have called on members of society, including the country’s elites, to uphold peace and unity so as to prevent any potential postelection clashes at the grassroots level.
The move, which has been described by many as another attempt to defuse political tensions, came after presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto publicly refused to accept the General Elections Commission’s (KPU) final result of the presidential election, which is expected to show that incumbent Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has been reelected to the presidency.
A number of relatively young regional leaders and children of two former presidents gathered at the Balai Kirti Museum, which is part of the Bogor Palace compound in West Java, on Wednesday, during which they talked about the postelection situation and expressed hope that a peaceful climate would be maintained.
“We agree that we have to continue efforts to strengthen the country’s unity during the days leading up to May 22 and to minimize the potential for clashes,” said Bogor Mayor Bima Arya, who was also the initiator of the meeting, called the “Bogor Forum”.
Figures who attended the meeting included West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil, Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo, East Java Deputy Governor Emil Dardak, Banyuwangi Regent Azwar Anas and West Nusa Tenggara Governor Zulkiflimansyah.
Ridwan said they had decided to join hands as they shared similar concerns over postelection tensions that had affected the grass roots in regions across the country and they felt the need to contribute to spreading peaceful messages.
On the days remaining until the KPU announces the election results, Ridwan said the figures were committed to being positive influences, including through social media.
“Information has to bring peaceful narratives that call for unity to counter other information that causes tension and are exhausting,” Ridwan said. “We must strive for the nation to go forward toward a better future.”
Prabowo, who has persistently rejected defeat, has claimed that data collected by his campaign team showed that he had won the race and claimed that the KPU’s vote count — which puts Jokowi in the lead — contains “systematic and massive cheating” that benefited the incumbent.
The rival camp has said it would not challenge the election results at the Constitutional Court, saying the court — the final adjudicator on the interpretation of laws and election disputes — was useless.
Members of the rival camp have threatened to mobilize the masses in “people’s power” protests if they found the election results to be fraudulent.
Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, the son of former president and Democratic Party patron Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and former president Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid’s daughter Yenny Wahid attended Wednesday’s event to call for all parties to respect the law.
Yenny urged parties to resolve any election disputes through constitutional means, while saying that mobilizing the masses could lead to clashes in which people could be hurt.
“The [rival] elite must sit together and talk to address the problem and settle any allegations of election fraud through existing mechanisms, but don’t pit the people against each other,” she said.
Agus, whose party was technically in the coalition supporting Prabowo’s candidacy, said the Dems had remained steadfast in their commitment to respect the KPU’s vote count process and that they would settle any dispute through legal mechanisms.
While the young politicians’ call was considered a positive move, the call needs to resonate with other politicians and figures to make them more effective in diffusing tensions within society, said Gadjah Mada University (UGM) political expert Kuskridho Ambardi.
“If the elites and local figures make the call louder, the movement would be able to isolate groups that don’t want to accept the KPU’s results,” Kuskridho said.
The political analyst noted that top potential candidates to run in the 2024 presidential election were among the figures who gathered on Wednesday, including Agus, Ridwan and Ganjar, who were considered promising to run for the country’s top seat.
“They are starting to be in the spotlight,” he said.
