Jokowi
needs us, more than ever
Togi Pangaribuan ; A
lecturer at the School of Law, University of Indonesia
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JAKARTA
POST, 05 Februari 2015
Everyone is disappointed, but President Joko “Jokowi”
Widodo needs our support; our assurance that we are with him and not with the
vested interests surrounding him.
In early January, Jokowi recommended the appointment of
Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan as the new chief of the National Police, effectively
sending Gen. Sutarman into early retirement. The recommendation was quickly
processed and endorsed by the legislature, in an abnormal show of unity,
despite Budi being declared a graft suspect by the Corruption Eradication
Commission (KPK). However, because of his status as a suspect, Jokowi
postponed the appointment.
Replicating previous KPK — police incidents of the past,
KPK commissioners are being investigated for alleged crimes that happened
years ago. One has been declared a suspect. Jokowi then formed an independent
team to advise him on what to do. The team has gone on record to say that
Jokowi is under immense external pressure to appoint Budi despite growing
controversy and public anguish.
It is probably an understatement to say that Jokowi is
currently trapped between a rock and a hard place. Former president Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono, despite enjoying a landslide victory of over 60 percent in
the 2009 presidential election, was thought to have had a difficult second
term rife with compromise and kowtowing with factions of the House of
Representatives. Jokowi, not in command of his party, facing a divided House
and now surrounded by people with their own agenda, is facing a heavier task.
A study in 2010 by renowned political scientists William
Liddle and Saiful Mujani highlighted the strong influence of political
parties and authoritative figures inside a party as the cappo di tutti capi
of the organization.
This was evident in the appointment of Jokowi as
presidential candidate of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P)
and the strong encouragement of the NasDem Party, through chairman Surya
Paloh. In his presidential campaign, Jokowi promised to enforce merit-based
political appointments, but he has succumbed to returning the favors of his
own party and other parties that supported him.
Budi Gunawan is widely known to be close with PDI-P
chairperson Megawati and the party. He is her former aide-de-camp and
high-ranking PDI-P officers publicly call him their close friend. He is also
known to have a wide network of friends in the legislature, within the police
and several conglomerates. He is even alleged to have played a significant
part in pairing Jokowi with Vice President Jusuf Kalla. He did not make it as
a minister and is on the verge of not making it as chief of police.
It seems his camp is fighting back, using the law as a
tool. Using their wide powers to apprehend and establish a person as a
suspect. They have established Bambang Widjojanto as a suspect in a 2010 case
and are on their way to investigating at least another deputy, Adnan Pandu
Praja, for a 2006 case.
This wide power of the police to apprehend and determine
an individual as a suspect is one of the main concerns in the discussion to
revise the Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP). Aside from probably minor
procedural aspects, the apprehending and questioning of Bambang Widjojanto
were within the authority of the police.
The interests that want Budi as chief of police have used
the law as a tool to serve their purpose, much like how the late president
Soeharto, who the PDI-P militantly fought, used the law to oppress them and
democracy.
Jokowi is virtually powerless — his own party official is
throwing around the idea of impeachment, other parties in his coalition are
fighting him. Volunteers who used to march with him have started to voice
disappointment and disbelief. People have even started saying that Yudhoyono,
or SBY, was a firmer decision maker.
This was a massive turnaround before his presidency even
reached 100 days. People seemed to forget that Jokowi had achieved a lot in
his first 100 days, including the development of seaports, simplifying
investment procedures and revising government procurement regulations to
ensure food security and independence from imports.
In his recent speech and interview on Kompas TV, the
President looked somber and clueless, forgetting that he has prolific lawyers
who were there for the KPK during the earlier tumult of KPK leaders Bibit S.
Rianto and Chandra Hamzah at his disposal, forgetting the enthusiasm of the
people when he was elected president.
Forgetting the massive support he received during his
campaign. Forgetting the sheer number of people who volunteered for someone
they legitimately saw as a drop of water in the dry desert that is Indonesian
politics.
We need to remind him of all this. We need to rally behind
him and remind him that we voted for him and that the people are far more
important than the party. And he should look no further for an example than
his friend, Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama, who chose the
people over allegiance to a misguided political party. ●
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