Why I (still) stand by Jokowi Darmawan Triwibowo  ;  An independent public policy researcher based in Jakarta

JAKARTA POST, 17 Maret 2015

                                                                                                                                     

                                                                                                                                                           

Recently a friend from Sydney sent me a Facebook message that read: “Please tell me why […] you still give [Joko] Jokowi [Widodo] your unwavering support? Didn’t his handling of the Budi Gunawan case, his reluctance to stop criminalization […] provide you enough evidence that he is a […] false hope who has deceived many of his disillusioned supporters? Did you love him that much?” The question about Jokowi and Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan did not surprise me. Some colleagues have even accused me of being uncritical and loving Jokowi blindly. I usually respond: “Having a good man in a flawed system is better than having a flawed man in a flawed system.” But I’ll elaborate more with the following: Dear Meilanie, If it was up to me and I had the power to do so, I would keep Jokowi only for Surakarta citizens. We lived happily under his care and he could do much more for us had he remained there. I was very worried when he accepted the directive from his party to stand for Jakarta governor. The capital is a very different pond with so many sharks that could hurt him despite his good intentions, talent, sincerity and kindness. It was painful to watch people from his opponents’ side promote dirty campaigns against him and his deputy, the current Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama. However, I stayed on the sidelines, hoping for the best for him. Should he lose, he could always return to Surakarta with his head held high since he performed stunningly while there. But eventually he won. I hoped the story — at least for a while — was going to end there. I believe he was destined for bigger challenges, but I think he needed time to prove his worth on the national stage as Jakarta’s governor, helping sort out our capital’s problems. When people started talking about Jokowi becoming president in 2014, I felt it was a dilemma. I believed it would be too fast and too early for him as he had just begun to grasp the dynamics of national politics. Yet he was the only available candidate with a real possibility to beat the other one, Prabowo Subianto. When he accepted the nomination, initially I decided to hope the best for him. But I could not stand it when people started to attack him unfairly in social media. So, I challenged people and straightened the false news every single day for an intense two months. It was no longer a choice. It had become an obligation to stand for the right side — at least for me. He won the election. What a relief! But the euphoria reminded me of when Soeharto stepped down in 1998. People had assumed that the magic would soon turn all wrongs into rights. With no more hard work, sweat and tears. They were wrong. They were very wrong. But people did not remember. They did not learn to manage expectations and see the road ahead through a realistic lens. Months ago, I compared Jokowi and three other leaders elected on their “change” platforms — Fernando Lugo of Paraguay, Benigno Aquino III of the Philippines and America’s Barack Obama. All three faced a steep struggle to manifest their pledges because they had to deal with the same old oligarchs in politics. Lugo was ousted from office. Obama cut too many compromises that frustrated his base but succeeded in recovering the economy and overhauling the healthcare system to get elected for the second term — while “Noynoy’s” reform is stalled. Jokowi too has too many dirty dishes to wash. Efforts to weaken the KPK started in the previous administration. Yet, despite his popularity, Jokowi remains a marginal figure in his political party with less authority than previous president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had in his Democrat Party. So he has to keep a good rapport with the oligarchs — Surya Paloh, Megawati Soekarnoputri and Jusuf Kalla — to govern effectively. Jokowi, overtly aware of his weak position, has cut too many unfavorable deals to win some discretionary power, which erodes his popular support. Suddenly our chosen one faces a steep learning curve from his unpopular policy choices. He simultaneously has to fight on three fronts: (1) a policy and budget negotiation with the legislature dominated by the opposition; (2) a power struggle with his own interest-plagued Great Indonesia Coalition, especially with his Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P); (3) bridging the expectation gap with his noisy, hard to satisfy and impatient middle-class supporters. No previous post-New Order president has ever experienced such multiple pressures. BJ Habibie, Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid, Megawati and Yudhoyono did not need to worry much about the full support of their parties, nor did they have to pay full attention to popular demand. But that’s why we voted for Jokowi. Because we believed he could do the difficult work. But that’s also why he deserves more space and time to prove he is up to the task. Sure, some of his decisions and inaction have baffled me. But I do not want to be one of the “boo-boys” pressing for instant change incessantly. Although some must play that part to exercise direct control and make him accountable publicly, the booing parties risk focusing on detailed, negative information and amplifying that negativity to the public, which distracts people from any intangible, more positive information. Further, such noise will hardly help Jokowi get leverage to win the power struggle within his coalition. His party simply does not care and has even stated they can topple him whenever necessary. Excessive negativity would hamper his effectiveness to deal with political negotiations in the legislature. I voted for him to do a difficult job with so little political capital for five years. So I won’t revoke my trust after just four months. Don’t people remember that we had no luxury of choices during the presidential election? It was very black and white. I choose to stand by him with my silent unwavering support. I will never give up on him through thick and thin because change will take time and he can learn from his mistakes. It is no longer a matter of choice. It’s a matter of obligation, fairness and decency as a responsible voter. From Darmawan Triwibowo — an  ordinary but proud Surakarta citizen ●