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Coalition parties defend Jokowi’s politicking
Jokowi reportedly briefed the group on a possible alliance for the 2024 presidential election, which drew a flurry of accusations that the President was meddling in the upcoming elections.
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Members of the governing coalition have dismissed accusations that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has engaged in political activity unbefitting of his office ahead of the 2024 general election, saying the President “should not be neutral” and that his involvement in political discussions with party leaders “cannot be avoided”.
On May 2, the President hosted a private meeting with the leaders of six pro-government parties, excluding the NasDem Party, at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta. Jokowi reportedly briefed the group on a possible alliance for the 2024 presidential election, which drew a flurry of accusations that the President was meddling in the upcoming elections.
Former president Jusuf Kalla has advised Jokowi to steer clear of politics in the final years of his presidency and follow in the footsteps of his predecessors Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) and Megawati Soekarnoputri to allow for free competition in the presidential election.
Kalla also criticized Jokowi's decision not to invite NasDem Party leader Surya Paloh to the meeting
On Thursday, two days after the meeting, Jokowi for the first time acknowledged that NasDem, while some of its members were still part of his Cabinet, was no longer on his side. He said it would have been inappropriate to invite Surya to a meeting discussing election strategies.
A day later, in a meeting with one of Jokowi’s closest allies, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Surya sent a message to Jokowi to stay neutral and stop appearing to endorse certain candidates, describing the practice as “unhealthy”, according to NasDem executive Sugeng Suparwoto.
‘Cannot be avoided’
Members of the ruling coalition defended the President.
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) secretary general Hasto Kristiyanto claimed Jokowi was simply carrying on a political tradition wherein the incumbent – including, he noted, the sitting vice president – made efforts to influence the outcome of the subsequent election.
"Empirically speaking, this has been done by previous presidents. […Jusuf Kalla] was, in fact, the head of the steering committee in the campaign for the Pak Jokowi-Ma'ruf Amin ticket" in 2019, Hasto told reporters on Monday.
Hasto insisted that the talk among party leaders last week revolved around the nation’s future challenges and that the President did not mention anything about practical politics, nor did the meeting involve any efforts to coax party leaders to back his preferred candidates for the 2024 presidency.
“We don't talk about figures [of presidential and vice presidential candidates]. We don't talk about practical politics," Hasto stressed.
PPP central board executive Achmad Baidowi said discussions of electoral politics in such settings were unavoidable.
“The meeting was held in the evening, not in the working hours. As long as no laws are being violated, [the meeting] should be fine,” Achmad said in a statement.
Meanwhile, PAN deputy chairman Viva Yoga insisted that last week’s gathering “did not violate any laws” and that such discussions between Jokowi and party leaders were necessary to ensure good governance.
“The President holds both a political and a public position. Talking about politics or being involved in the political process is something that cannot be avoided,” Viva said.
He also said Jokowi had a right to a personal preference for candidates who “he thinks can continue development and bring about changes for the nation” as such preferences were “guaranteed by the law” as long as the president did not abuse his office by using state facilities for influence.
The PAN politician also said Jokowi had “never forbidden anyone from running in the presidential race” despite what he said were narratives from certain candidates that the government had prevented them from joining the race.
“The president has given wide and free space for anyone to run. There is no prohibition from the president for anyone to participate in the contest,” Viva said.
Viva claimed the President “should not be neutral in the 2014 election” as he had to actively monitor its organization so that it was run in an honest and fair manner.
‘Problematic’
Firman Noor, a senior researcher at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), considered the recent criticism of Jokowi’s apparent partiality reasonable.
“Inviting pro-government parties, while excluding other circles such as new parties, to talk about politics at the Palace, which is the symbol of the president for all Indonesian people, is ethically problematic,” Firman told The Jakarta Post.
“Everything [that happens] at the Palace is imbued with state affairs,” he said.
“If this mentality is left unchecked, it could become dangerous, as people could use state tools for the interests of their group.”
