Jakarta – The Secretary General of the Central Directing Board of the Functional Group, Ary Mardjono, affirmed that the Functional Group can accept the three regulations regarding the implementation guidance for the 1997 general elections, including those issued by the Minister of Home Affairs, the Minister of Information, as well as the State Police Headquarters.

"The Functional Group can accept those three regulations. There is no problem, because all three regulations refer to two previous legislative products, namely a Presidential Decree and a Government Regulation," said Mardjono at the Functional Group Central Directing Board offices in Jakarta, on Sunday (16/2). When he spoke, Mardjono was sided by the Chairman of the Functional Group Central Directing Board's Department of Information, Publication and Mass Media, Sofyan Lubis.

The three regulations in question are Letter of Decision of the Minister of Home Affairs/Chairman of the General Elections Institute No.7/1997 concerning implementation guidance for the general elections campaign, Letter of Decision of the Minister of Information No.012/Kep/Menpen/1997 regarding utilization of radio and television broadcasts in general elections campaign activities, and Field Operations Guidance of the State Police Head Number Juklap/01/I/1997 concerning the granting of campaign permits.

According to Mardjono, these three regulations are the detailed realization of the Presidential Decree and Government Regulation. He added that the three regulatory products are intended to enhance the quality of the general elections. "After the Central Directing Board of the Functional Group studied them, the three regulations do indeed aim at general elections of a better quality," said Mardjono.

On that occasion, the Secretary General of the Central Directing Board of the Functional Group conveyed five statements of position, one of those being that the Central Directing Board of the Functional Group evaluates, that the subject matter of the general elections campaigns of the three general elections participant organizations, represent their respective programs in relation to national development. "In the previous general elections, unnecessary derogatory words were often heard."

Another position states that with the determination of six campaign regions, the Central Directing Board of the Functional Group evaluates that an advance has been made which was absent in the previous general elections. According to the Central Directing Board, the division into regions is intended to avoid the occurrence of physical clashes between the respective participating organizations in the elections. "Now there will be no disturbing of one participant organization's campaign in progress by another participant organization," he said.

The Functional Group Central Directing Board also supports a dialogue-style campaign, which it evaluates as an advance, because in the previous elections there were only monologue campaigns which took the form of mass meetings. Campaigns through television and radio (TVRI/RRI) were also evaluated by the Functional Group Central Directing Board as a quality enhancement, because these would be transmitted to all points of the country in their entirety without cutting.

Another position of the Central Directing Board concerned the absence of parades, which was evaluated as a meaningful advance. "Parades act more to the detriment of the public or the little people. I don't need to put forward the excesses resulting from public parades," said Mardjono.

Must be obeyed

As said by Ary Mardjono, the Functional Group Central Directing Board states that it agrees to those three regulations, and that these are decisions which must be obeyed by the three participating organizations in the general elections, because these are binding decisions. "The Central Directing Board of the Functional Group will implement the three regulations consistently. Hopefully all three elections participant organizations will be able to implement them," hoped Mardjono.

Asked about objections by another participant organization (PPP, Ed.) to the appointment of a program guide who has to be a member of the Indonesian Elections Committee (PPI), and the campaign speech draft which has to be scrutinized, Mardjono called that a good step. According to him, a program guide is needed with certain criteria. While regarding the campaign speech draft, scrutiny does not mean that it has to be studied word for word like a cinetron draft, but just the core matter framework.

Is there a possibility that when another general elections participant organization is campaigning in a region, the Functional Group suddenly arranges a meeting with its cadres? asked journalists. Mardjono affirmed that the meetings with cadres which are commonly held by the General Chairman of the Central Directing Board of the Functional Group. H Harmoko, have been finalized. "So there will be no Functional Group cadres meetings when other general elections participant organizations are campaigning," promised Mardjono.

On that occasion Mardjono also disclosed the readiness of the Functional Group Central Directing Board to welcome the implementation of the 1997 General Elections. He mentioned that the Central Directing Board is already at the stage of carrying out the implementation guidance of the Functional Group's campaign, and preparing the campaign director, preparing the campaign subject matter concerning the programs which are adapted to each respective region, and orientation of the campaign managers who will organize all requirements for the implementation of the campaign. "The Functional Group is moving towards optimum readiness," emphasized Mardjono. (*)