5 Memorable Moments in Inaugural Presidential Debate

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The inaugural presidential debate has been completed. Facts, emotional responses, and outright attack on each candidate were thrown into the debate that was parted into six segments.

The following are some moments expressed by the number 01 candidates Jokowi – Ma’ruf Amin and number 02 candidates Prabowo Subianto – Sandiaga Uno throughout the debate.

1. Both Jokowi and Prabowo on attack mode

Both presidential hopefuls scorned each other back-and-forth with Prabowo initially accusing Jokowi of foul play after he claims a regional leader was arrested for declaring support for one of the candidates.

“That is not fair,” Prabowo scoffed, “Maybe you have a state official that is acting excessively.”

In an attempt to counter Prabowo’s attack, Jokowi took an example of the hoax case involving Ratna Sarumpaet, who was a former member of the Prabowo campaign team.

“Don’t rush it. Take the example of your campaigner. She claimed she was physically persecuted and then went to make a press conference, but what happened? [Her assumed injuries were] just an effect of plastic surgery,” said Jokowi.

2. Prabowo wants corruptors exiled at a remote island

In the debate’s segment on eradicating corruption, Prabowo Subianto said that he plans to punish corruptors by sending them to a remote island if he gets elected.

“Corruptors must be punished severely. We should put them somewhere, like a remote island, make them mining sand,” said Prabowo.

3. Low wage sparks corruption, says Prabowo

According to Prabowo, one of the factors that fuel corruption among State Officials is the low-level wage. “They don’t make as much. It isn’t realistic,” he said. One of the ways he pitches to improve this is by raising their wage by increasing tax ratios from 10 percent to 16 percent.

However, his statement was refuted by Jokowi who maintained that the current wage of State Officials is more than enough. Meanwhile, Sandiaga Uno opts to fix the country’s state-asset recording.

4. Moderator reminds Ma’ruf Amin regarding the duration

The statement of vice president candidate Ma’ruf Amin was cut short by moderator Ira Koesno at the end of the second segment when Ma’ruf continued his answer after the time limit alarm rang. “Time’s up. I remind you that this is a debate and not a speech,” said Ira Koesno.

5. Jokowi acknowledges unsolved human rights issues in the past

Incumbent president candidate Jokowi admits that he is still carrying the weight of unsolved past human rights violation cases. “These should have been solved at the moment the incident took place. We are still committed to investigating human rights violations until it is completely resolved,” said Jokowi.

The first presidential debate talked about human rights issues, corruption, terrorism, and legal issues. The debate was separated into six segments throughout the process.

M ROSSENO AJI | BUDIARTI UTAMI PUTRI | DEWI NURITA | ANDITA RAHMA