Concrete Action to End Polemic

SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN

President Joko Widodo chaired the Plenary Cabinet Session at the State Palace, Jakarta, Monday (2/11/2020).

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has urged his ministers to stop calling for the extension of his presidential term and the postponement of the 2024 election. We are waiting for the next step.

The order to end the speculation and debate was conveyed by Jokowi in his address at the plenary cabinet session at the State Palace in Central Jakarta, West Java, on Tuesday, and published on Wednesday.

The instructions only confirmed the President’s previous statements. For example, on March 4, the President said that he would respect and obey the constitution. At the end of 2019, Jokowi also stated that he was not interested in serving as president for a third term. "Those who talk about [extension] of the presidential term show three [qualities]: first, [they] want to slap me in the face; second, they want to ‘seek for face’, while I already have one; third, they want to plunge me in,” he said at the time.

Although Jokowi has reiterated his position several times, the debate on the extension of the presidential term continues. The people feel there is a discrepancy between declarations on stage and what is said behind the scenes, as shown in a number of statements made to several ministers and leaders of political parties.

Also read:

President: Stop Term Extension Talk

The question of the extension of the presidential term and the postponement of the election even emerged, for example, during the National Gathering of the Association of Indonesian Village Administrations (Apdesi), Special Capital Region of Jakarta, West Java, on Tuesday, as well as during the meeting of hundreds of village heads and regional leaders in Lebak, Banten, West Java, on Thursday.

To end the polemic, Haryatmoko, a lecturer at the University of Sanata Dharma, Yogyakarta, Central Java, said in his opinion piece in Kompas on Tuesday that the President needed to clarify. According to him, it would be good if Jokowi stated, "I will not delay the election and will not serve as president for three terms."

KOMPAS/HENDRA A SETYAWAN

The discourse of postponing the election and the presidential term for three terms was rejected by the public through banners in the Jagakarsa area, Jakarta, Sunday (13/3/2022).

Vice President Ma'ruf Amin made a similar statement, saying that the people’s mandate given to both him and Jokowi as Vice President and President would end in 2024. Therefore, according to the Vice President, "We are only thinking until 2024. There are no more terms."

Indonesia has already experienced two bitter events related to excessively long presidential terms.

A firm statement is needed because the limitation of the president's term of office, as stated in the Constitution, is set with reason. Indonesia has already experienced two bitter events related to excessively long presidential terms.

After being declared president for life in 1963, Sukarno ended his term with the political turmoil of 1965/1966. Political turmoil also forced Suharto, who replaced Sukarno, to declare his resignation as president on May 21, 1998. In fact, on March 11, 1998, Suharto was reelected by the People's

Consultative Assembly (MPR) as president for the period 1998-2003 (seventh term). Suharto’s reelection received a big applause from the MPR members.

The end of the Old Order and the New Order also taught us about the importance of economic issues. Therefore, one thing the government now needs to do is to work extra hard to cope with the people's difficulties, for example due to rising prices for basic necessities and energy. At the same time, of course, the government should also focus on preparing for the 2024 general election. With this approach, the current government will be remembered with “gold ink”.

(This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi)