Needless to say, the absence of opposition parties poses a threat to the country's democracy and social harmony. It is therefore imperative to reemphasize the need for a robust opposition to maintain a balanced and transparent political system.

The absence of opposition will have negative implications for democracy and societal well-being, as political elites will collaborate with economic oligarchs to perpetuate self-serving interests through policies that do not prioritize the welfare of the people.

As the dust of the 2024 elections is settled, several political parties previously outside the winning coalition, such as the Nasdem Party, the National Awakening Party (PKB) and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), have now joined the Onward Indonesia Coalition (KIM) under president-elect Prabowo Subianto.

Now only the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) remains outside  the big-tent coalition. As the winner of the legislative elections, the party has raised public hopes of a meaningful opposition force in the House of Representatives that would keep the incoming government in check.

However, recent developments show that the PDI-P will be unable to live up to the expectations. The reelection of Puan Maharani, the PDI-P deputy chair, as the House speaker on Tuesday is sending a strong message that the party will eventually shift to the ruling coalition, especially as a planned meeting between PDI-P matriarch Megawati Soekarnoputri, who is Puan’s mother, and Prabowo Subianto, is still in the offing.

Puan herself has openly said that the PDI-P is open to the scenario of joining the government, while the party has refrained from announcing whether it will play a role as an opposition during Prabowo’s presidency, which will begin in less than three weeks. Even if the PDI-P does stay out of the government as it did during the presidency of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in 2004-2014, it looks set to be friendly to the Prabowo administration.