Jokowi's Political Legacy
Will Jokowi engage in political guerrilla tactics to extend his term as president? I don't think so, because I remember his sentence, "I want to leave the Palace with respect!"
Even though Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is not a political scientist, but a forestry graduate, that does not mean he doesn’t know the jungle of Indonesian politics. Even though academically he did not study the disciplines of defense or security, he knows how to apply guerrilla tactics and strategies in facing a larger force.
In other words, Jokowi is in fact a “little person”, who through a guerrilla strategy (read: blusukan [ impromptu visit]), can defeat people who are much stronger or bigger, like David destroying the power of Goliath.
This can be seen in how during the 2012 Jakarta regional election (Pilkada) as mayor of Surakarta, Jokowi, who was paired with Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama was able to defeat Fauzi Bowo, the incumbent governor of Jakarta paired with Nahrowi Ramli, an Army major general who was an expert in intelligence and once head of the National Encryption Agency.
This could also be seen when Jokowi, paired with Jusuf Kalla, was able to defeat the pairing of Prabowo Subianto and Hatta Rajasa in the 2014 presidential election.
What also needs to be presented here is though Jokowi is not an Indonesian historian, he certainly knows Indonesia's modern history, both pre- and post-independence, and especially the history of the end of president Sukarno's power. President Sukarno was proposed by the military to be appointed as president for life, even though it was a tactic so that there would be no general elections. If there had been election, the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) was highly believed to win at that time, something unwanted in military circles.
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> Jokowi: Between Legacy and Second-term Curse
History noted, the asymmetrical relationship triangle of president Sukarno, the Army and the PKI left the military as the ruler of the state, the destruction of president Sukarno’s power and the destruction of the strength of the PKI in political wilderness of 1960s Indonesia.
As part of the baby boomer generation, Jokowi also certainly knows how Indonesia was under the government of president Soeharto for 32 years. In a conversation with a writer and several Indonesian political observers post-2014 elections, President Jokowi asked a question that did not need an answer, "How can it be that Indonesia's abundant natural wealth is enjoyed by foreigners and corrupted by the rulers, without leaving anything to the Indonesian population, especially those who live around the mining areas".
That is why Jokowi strives to take over all foreign-controlled mines so that they can be in the hands of the Indonesian nation and are used as well as possible for the benefit of the people, especially those living around mining sites.
Political legacy
The orientation of President Jokowi's power is how he can leave a memorable political legacy for the people of Indonesia and build strong foundations for the Indonesian nation as it reaches 100 years of independence onward.
President Jokowi's version of Indonesia in the future is partially inspired by Bung Karno, Jokowi's ideological father.
This includes, among other things, the building of dams that can irrigate rice fields and farmland across regions and how from Sabang to Merauke, one can travel the length of the country through land and sea toll roads, so that the agricultural, mining and marine products can be brought to the domestic market and abroad. Jokowi also wants to change habits from the past, namely in the economy, which struggles to meet the needs of the domestic market with few efforts to expand exports – and not only to traditional export destinations, but also to other regions or countries.
The Jokowi era is an era that is indeed full of battles and political gambling. There are those who are close to Jokowi who want to take economic and political benefits from their positions as party chairmen, ministers or chairmen of the people's representative institutions. Not infrequently they also try to silence voices criticizing the government, especially those that hit the economic interests of the state officials.
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> Extension of Power and Statesmanship
There are also President Jokowi's assistants who in order to achieve political and economic interests propose that the extension of President Jokowi's tenure be made possible, either through the amendment of the Constitution and the change of laws related to the postponement of elections or the issue of the presidential position for three terms.
Despite not being a constitutional law expert, President Jokowi knows exactly how political twists were after President Soeharto stepped down, how the 1945 Constitution was amended four times and why the President's term of office was only pegged at two times. Jokowi is also not a person who is so thirsty for power he has to mobilize strength so his presidential term is extended, as alleged by William “Bill” Liddle. For Jokowi, two terms of office as the mayor of Solo, once the term of office as the governor of Jakarta and twice in the position of president are already sufficient.
He did not want to be a "party officer" who was assigned by Megawati Soekarnoputri to become a presidential candidate in 2014 to step over the Republic of Indonesia’s 1945 Constitution. Jokowi knows exactly what the extension of the president's office would mean for the continuation of democratization in Indonesia.
Indonesia is one of the best examples of a country that has successfully stepped forward and changed itself, shifting from an authoritarian regime, entering the transition of democracy, up to strengthening its democracy and then becoming a well-established democratic country.
Jokowi does not want to be a victim of those who want to continue characterizing Indonesia as in a "criminal democracy" situation, whose discussions are historically carried out by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), with Bill Liddle and I being the coordinator of the event for more than 20 years.
The honor for himself, his family, party and nation is far more important than just a mirage of power.
If we associate him with his party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Jokowi certainly wants his term of office to be successful, bringing a fragrant name not only for him, his party and the Jokowi clan, but also the name of the Indonesian nation as a whole.
If he is thirsty for power and receives an extension of the term, his political bet is very large. Everything will have to start from a zero-point again, something he certainly does not want.
Will Jokowi engage in political guerrilla tactics to extend his term as president? I don't think so, because I remember his sentence, "I want to leave the Palace with respect!" The honor for himself, his family, party and nation is far more important than just a mirage of power.
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Ikrar Nusa Bakti
Ikrar Nusa Bhakti, LIPI Political Researcher (March 1984-April 2017), Indonesian Ambassador to Tunisia (April 2017-September 2021)
This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo.
