Ihsan Reliubun, Jakarta – Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle or PDIP politician Aria Bima urged that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo remain neutral during the 2024 general elections.
"PDIP is welcoming the recent occasion in which the running presidential candidate Anies Baswedan and Ganjar Pranowo talked of their plead to Jokowi as [current] president to stay neutral," Aria said in a written statement received by Tempo on Monday.
The neutrality is extended into state apparatus, Aria mentioned. "[State] apparatus must not influence or repress the public to elect a certain candidate. If that happens, democracy is regressing," said the member of Commission VI of the House of Representatives. These include the General Elections Commission, the National Armed Forces, and the police.
Aria believed that not only was Jokowi a good father, but he was also a commendable state leader. Thus, he claimed that Jokowi would place all state apparatus in a neutral position.
Additionally, there were 176 acting regional heads at the time, all of which must remain neutral. "We don't want the toxin of the New Order to seep into Jokowi's administration. We'll make sure of that," Aria said.
Any sliver of partiality on Jokowi's side is a sign of a regressing democracy, Aria emphasized. Further, he said that future general elections are salvageable only if the 2024 General Elections are conducted lawfully, without oddities.
Such oddities include the recent Constitutional Court decision that is still fresh in the public's mind. "PDIP's mandate to Jokowi will be concluded in 2024. The president is responsible for a principled election," Aria concluded.