Indra Budiari, Jakarta – Three weeks away from election day, Jakarta gubernatorial candidates Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama and Anies Baswedan are pulling out all the stops to win the hearts of the province's female voters, who make up almost half of the voter list.
On Wednesday, the two organized discussions and events in separate locations in Menteng and at the House of Representatives building, both in Central Jakarta, to address issues relevant to women.
During the first round, the General Elections Commission recorded that the percentage of female voters in Jakarta was slightly higher than that of men. In total, 78.5 percent of women on the voter list cast their vote, meanwhile only 74.2 percent men on the list cast their vote.
According to the KPU, Jakarta had 7,108,589 registered voters on polling day on Feb. 15. A recently released second-round voter list found that 3,634,585 voters are male and 3,630,164 are female.
As Ahok began to hide from the media spotlight, six days ago the governor's wife Veronica Tan introduced herself on social media by creating an Instagram account.
"I imagine that women in Jakarta could have particular skills and be able to live independently," Veronica said in the first video she posted on Instagram on March 17.
In addition to making her presence in social media felt, Veronica has also made numerous blusukan (impromptu visits) to various neighborhoods, to meet local residents.
Over the years, Veronica has been associated with art and community development in Jakarta through her leadership of the Council for National Handicrafts Indonesia (Dekransda) and unlike her husband, she has been seen as a media-shy public figure.
Iwet Ramadhan, a close aide of Veronica and a member of Ahok's campaign team, however, said that Veronica's recent blusukan were aimed to supervise the progress of her programs when she was Dekrasnada head, a position long associated with governors' wives, adding that her social media account was set up to raise public awareness on various programs she had implemented.
"Bu Veronica is a straightforward and strict person who does not promise anything before knowing that she can deliver it," Iwet said. "If her blusukan and social media presence attract votes, it's only a bonus."
Both Ahok and Anies also expressed their gratitude to women through their Instagram accounts during Women's day on March 8. While Anies expressed his deep respect for women in general as mother figures, Ahok dedicated his post to Veronica who he said had worked very hard not only for his family, but all women in Jakarta.
Unlike Veronica who has largely opted for social media interaction, Anies' wife Fery Farhati Ganis has attended various Quran recital events at which middleaged women make up the majority of participants. During her speeches, Fery has tried to relate to voters by asking about current commodity prices and explaining how her husband could turn things around if he is elected.
During his campaign, Anies has promised several programs to support women in Jakarta, including a "labor emergency unit" at each community health center (Puskesmas), saying that maternal deaths remain a problem due to a lack of access to quality health care in the capital.
The former culture and education minister and his running mate Sandiaga Uno are also famous for their pledge of a entrepreneurship center in every district, popularly known as the OK OCE program, which they claim will improve people's welfare through providing loans to housewives.
"OK OCE could really help housewives to start businesses in their own houses and support their families," Sandiaga said.
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2017/03/23/ahok-anies-out-to-charm-female-voters.html