Many are calling 2018 a political year. Such labeling only induces anxiety and unease.
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Kompas/Lasti Kurnia
General Elections Commission (KPU) commissioner for voter dissemination and education division, Wahyu Setiawan, introducing the hashtag SOVEREIGN VOTERS STRONG COUNTRY at the Central KPU office in Jakarta, Friday (27/10). The hashtag has been introduced as part of the Election Awareness Movement ahead of the 2018 regional elections and the 2019 simultaneous elections.
Many are calling 2018 a political year. Such labeling only induces anxiety and unease.
It is true that regional elections will occur in 171 regions, 17 of which are large provinces such as East Java, Central Java, West Java, North Sumatra and South Sulawesi, in 2018. Analysts have said the results of regional elections in 2018 will be used as a reference point for the 2019 presidential election. The elections in the three provinces in Java alone will involve 45 percent of the national population. Nevertheless, regional and presidential elections remain two starkly different things.
Being cautious about the upcoming regional elections is understandable. Preparations and anticipation are necessary for these elections. However, there should not be any overt anxiety that will only focus too much of the nation’s energy on political matters. Regional elections are ordinary things. This will not be the first time the nation has held regional elections. In 2017, we held 101 simultaneous regional elections, including the one in Jakarta, which has often been said to be the harshest regional election we have ever held. Political elites have a role to ensure that the nation remains politically calm.
Kompas/Wisnu Widiantoro
National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian giving a presentation at the National Police 2017 Performance Press Conference at the Police headquarters on Friday (29/12). Other than giving a presentation on the institution’s performance in 2017, the police chief also explained about the possibility of security threats in 2018. There is a possibility of threats because of big events in Indonesia such as the simultaneous elections and the Asian Games.
Other than the upcoming regional elections, the government must keep its focus on resolving economic issues. Extra effort by the government is needed to reach an economic growth of more than five percent to prevent the country from staying too long in the middle income trap.
Securing alternative funding sources to complete unfinished infrastructure projects, resolving existing economic gaps, resolving people’s weakening purchasing power, anticipating possible increases in the unemployment rate due to retail business closures and preparing the foundations of digital economy development is just some of the work the government needs to do.
The issue of weakening purchasing power is crucial and must be responded to immediately. The government must apply policies to improve people’s purchasing power. The village fund instrument, which is Rp 120 trillion (US$8.88 billion) in 2018, can be used to improve people’s purchasing power. However, what needs to be emphasized is that the fund must be used for urgent purposes and in legally accountable ways.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s idea of changing the mindset of village development by involving people’s initiatives is interesting. However, we need to make sure that the fund is properly used and the resulting work is of high quality. We need to address several problems to prevent the village fund from being misappropriated.
Indonesia’s Fitch Ratings investment grade increase to BBB with a stable outlook in 2017 is a good reason to remain optimistic as we go into the political year. Optimism must also be fostered through improvement in the ease of business index in 2017. These are all important foundations of our optimism. In the end, however, it all depends on all of us.
