Prepping Steps for Presidential Term Extension
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12 September 2022 09:11 WIB
Some 5,721 people from various elements attended the conference, choosing presidential candidates for the 2024 General Elections. Jokowi received the highest votes totaling 1,704 or 29,79 percent.
Right after Jokowi, Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno came in second with 968 votes, and the third was Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo with 921 votes. Other figures receiving the vote were Gerindra chief patron Prabowo Subianto in the fourth position, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan in the fifth position, and West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil in the sixth position.
Budie Arie stated that after the first conference in Bandung, Projo was determined to hold similar agenda in other provinces. The first conference’s result was deemed a reflection of people’s wishes for Jokowi to run again as a presidential candidate. "On our stance, we’ll wait for the forum in 34 provinces,” he said.
Earlier this year, the discourse of Jokowi's term extension was brought up by the Investment Minister-cum-Head of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Bahlil Lahadalia. According to him, the business community hoped that the 2024 General Elections to be postponed until 2027.
“Among business people, most of them think of the democratic process. In the context of a leadership transition, if there is room for consideration to delay the process, that will be much better,” said Bahlil in the Political Indicators survey findings, quoted last January 10.
The support kept growing. At least three political party chairs joined in buzzing the talk. They were the National Awakening Party (PKB) chair Muhaimin Iskandar, Golkar Party chair Airlangga Hartarto, and the National Mandate Party (PAN) chair Zulkifli Hasan. Apart from political parties, the Indonesian Village Government Association (Apdesi) shared the same support. The association’s chairperson, Surta Wijaya, planned to declare support for Jokowi’s third term, yet it has not been realized by far.
The support for presidential term extension among Jokowi’s supporter groups, however, was not solid. Other volunteer groups backing Jokowi, National Secretariat or Seknas, rejected the idea, slamming the emergence of such support at the Bandung conference. “We don't know why it happened, too,” said the Seknas chairperson, Rambun Tjajo.
According to him, the Bandung conference was initiated by Projo. Seknas willingly joined the conference just because they made an agreement prior to the agenda; not to present presidential and vice presidential candidates. “We agreed to bring up programs only,” he said. “But during the conference, [names of presidential candidates] were presented.”
Rambun argued that Jokowi’s supporter groups should not create public opinions related to presidential candidates ahead of the 2024 General Elections because Jokowi’s name would obviously stand in the top rank. “If this happened, the President might not be in a good position as he is somewhat pushed [to serve the third term],” he said.
