Indication of Presidential Partisanship, Vulnerable to Eroding Anti-Corruption Spirit

"What the President said has further complicated the political situation," said Agus Sunaryanto.

The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI. The original article can be found in Indikasi Pemihakan Presiden, Rentan Kikis Semangat Antikorupsi

KOMPAS/NORBERTUS ARYA DWIANGGA MARTIAR

Press conference on the launch of the Corruption Eradication Outlook ICW 202 by the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), on Monday (29/1/2024), in Jakarta.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — President Joko Widodo's indication of partiality in the 2024 election contest is expected to encourage the politicization of the state budget which is vulnerable to various corrupt actions and behavior. It is feared that this vulnerability will worsen the situation eradicating corruption throughout 2024.

During a press conference for the launch of the Corruption Eradication Outlook Indonesia Corruption Watch for 2024, Monday (29/1/2024), in Jakarta, ICW Coordinator Agus Sunaryanto assessed that President Jokowi's statement was like opening a box Pandora. This statement is also seen as allowing state officials to campaign using the state budget and facilities.

"We see that what the President conveyed further aggravates the political situation because even though based on the Presidential Election Law, the President is allowed to campaign, it must be remembered that the President is a government official," said Agus.

According to Agus, aside from the use of state budget, facilities, and apparatus, the action of the President seemed to normalize the running of political dynasties. This was due to the fact that there is Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the first son of the President, who happens to be a candidate for Vice President and is paired with the second Presidential candidate, Prabowo Subianto.

The starting point of ICW's projection is President Jokowi's statement when interviewed by journalists at the Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force Base in Jakarta on Wednesday (24/1/2024).

Also read: President: I Convey the Provisions in the Election Law

"That, right, is the democratic right, the political right of every person. Every minister is the same. The most important thing is, the president can campaign, the president can take sides. "But, the most important thing is that during the campaign you must not use state facilities," said the President (Kompas, 25/1/2024).

The President's statement sparked various opinions in society. President Jokowi also made a new statement to set the record straight. The new statement was recorded at the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java, and broadcast on Friday (26/1/2024). The President there again said that the laws and regulations confirm that the president and vice president have the right to campaign. The President even showed paper that said the Election Law and Article 299 of Law Number 7 of 2017 concerning Elections (Kompas, 27/1/2024)

We observe that what the President conveyed is further aggravating the political situation, because even though according to the Electoral Law, the President is allowed to campaign, it must be remembered that the President is a state official.

KRIS - BIRO PERS SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN

President Joko Widodo enjoyed his weekend in Yogyakarta by visiting the shopping center Plaza Ambarrukmo on Saturday night, January 27, 2024. President Jokowi appeared to be accompanied by his youngest son, Kaesang Pangarep, and his daughter-in-law, Erina Gudono.

Presidential partisanship, according to ICW researcher Almas Ghaliya Putri, is suspected to have an impact on the politicization of everything related to the state, starting from civil servants, the military, police, and budgeting. The 2024 election is also feared to not be conducted fairly and equally. Likewise, conflicts of interest are likely to arise more frequently and may become increasingly normalized in an election contest.

Which actor plays the biggest role in causing problems? We can say that President Jokowi is the person most responsible for this problem. Instead of being an example for subordinates and ASN not to be "girls", the President has become an example of the opposite.

Meanwhile, the misuse of the country's resources is expected to become more massive, such as the use of budgets for social assistance (bansos). Imposing sanctions is also considered ineffective because the highest leaders also do the same or are in a non-neutral position. Next, there will be a policy of government leadership based on political leadership rotations.

”Which actor plays the most role in causing problems? We can say that President Jokowi is the person most responsible for this problem. "Instead of being an example for subordinates and ASN so that they don't cheat, the President has instead become an example of the opposite," said Almas.

Policy stagnation

On the law enforcement side, ICW researcher Kurnia Ramadhana projects there will be a stagnation. Starting from the policies of the police and the prosecutor's office to delay legal processes against participants in the 2024 elections, it is considered a policy that is wrong and cannot be understood logically from a legal perspective.

KOMPAS/CYPRIANUS ANTO SAPTOWALYONO

President Joko Widodo answered media questions after the aircraft handover event at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force Base in Jakarta on Wednesday (24/1/2024).

Law enforcement officials, especially prosecutors, are criticized for only emphasizing the noise of anti-corruption efforts that have resulted in losses of tens of trillions rupiah, but not being transparent with the public regarding the process of recovering state finances after the case has been legally resolved.

ICW projected that the turmoil related to the Corruption Eradication Commission will continue until 2024. The corruption case involving the Chairman of the KPK, Firli Bahuri, the case of extortion in KPK detention centers, and allegations of ethics violations by two other KPK leaders have resulted in less than maximum corruption eradication efforts by the anti-corruption agency. Moreover, the process of selecting new KPK leaders will begin in the middle of this year.

When Jokowi met with several party leaders, what should have been discussed was the improvement of law enforcement, for example by pushing for the enactment of the bill on asset confiscation.

This is exacerbated by the implementation of the Prison Law which is deemed to provide a red carpet for corrupt convicts to be released from prison more quickly. "When Jokowi met with several party chairmen, what should have been discussed was the improvement of law enforcement, such as pushing for the passage of the asset confiscation bill," said Kurnia.

Still related to the electoral contestation, ICW researcher Nisa Rizkiah believes that all presidential and vice-presidential candidate pairs as well as candidates for regional leadership cannot be separated from their affiliation with businessmen whose business is based on the extraction of natural resources, such as mining. This is feared to have an impact on reciprocal policies that benefit them. Indeed, cases of deaths in former mining holes have never been followed up with serious policies by regional leaders.

KOMPAS/ADRYAN YOGA PARAMADWYA

Greenpeace activists brought back the octopus statue from the HI Circle fountain in Jakarta on Friday (10/6/2023). The action called for a clean 2024 election free from oligarchy ahead of the registration of presidential and vice-presidential candidates on October 19-25, 2023. They also urged leaders to commit to serious, concrete, and ambitious actions to save the planet from the climate crisis.

Various issues like these, according to ICW researcher Wana Alamsyah, will ultimately have an impact on the narrowing of democratic space for civil society. One thing that has already become apparent is the silencing of criticism against public officials through criminal processes.

What is needed to improve the current situation is a firm stance from the President to remain neutral and stand above all groups. Similarly, the public is waiting for a decisive action from the President to reprimand his assistants who are not neutral. However, expecting that is considered very difficult.

Not only punishment, according to Wana, transparency efforts to expose government corruption can lead to murder. This was evident from the assassination of the state civil apparatus in the Semarang City Government, who was killed because he was suspected to be a witness in a corruption case. "There is no guarantee of safety from the state," said Wana.

Back to the president

Facing these various problems, according to Kurnia, what is needed to improve the current situation is a firm stance from the President to remain neutral and stand above all groups. Likewise, the public is waiting for a firm action from the President to take action against his aides who are not neutral. However, hoping for that is considered very difficult.

Also Read: President and Election Campaigns

Meanwhile, Agus assesses that the actions of state institutions or officials who dare to reveal indications of fraud are considered to be a gap to maintain the eradication of corruption from fading. The action of PPATK announcing the existence of funds from national strategic projects enjoyed by politicians is considered to be a good step. However, it must be noted that the use of certain forbidden words in Bahasa Indonesia, such as PBB, PKS, and PPP, cannot be translated and must be kept as is in the English translation.

The transparency of state officials regarding allegations of such corruption is considered to provide an opportunity for the preservation of corruption eradication. "This is the public's hope," he said.