President 'must be people's choice'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Future Indonesian presidents should be the
\npeople's choice, observers said over the weekend.<\/p>\n
They threw their weight behind a direct presidential electoral
\nsystem, which has been a topic of public debate in recent days.<\/p>\n
Ikrar Nusa Bhakti of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences
\n(LIPI) and Ramlan Surbakti of Airlangga University, Surabaya,
\nsupport a presidential electoral system that would not involve
\nthe People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).<\/p>\n
Ikrar said that when the MPR convened in November, the highest
\nlaw-making body should come out with a decree on direct
\npresidential elections. He proposed that a direct electoral
\nsystem be applied starting from 2004.<\/p>\n
All political factions in the MPR have principally agreed to a
\ndirect presidential election, but each has its own model.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan),
\nthe largest faction, for example, has proposed that presidential
\nelections should be part of general elections. Any political
\nparty which wins 51 percent or more of the vote would have the
\nright to name its leaders as the president and vice president. If
\nany party failed to win a majority, the presidential election
\nwould be entrusted to the MPR.<\/p>\n
While Golkar, the second largest faction, is more
\n"progressive", proposing elections without MPR involvement.<\/p>\n
"PDI Perjuangan is taking the wrong approach and it
\nunderestimates people's competence in electing their president,"
\nIkrar said.<\/p>\n
Ikrar said he was amazed at why PDI Perjuangan, which won the
\n1999 general election, still wanted to involve the MPR in
\npresidential elections.<\/p>\n
PDI Perjuangan should learn from the 1999 presidential
\nelection when its chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri was defeated
\nby Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid from the minority National
\nAwakening Party (PKB), he said.<\/p>\n
He said that Megawati could have won the presidency if the
\npresidential election had been the direct electoral system.<\/p>\n
Under the present system, the president and vice president are
\nelected by the MPR as the 1945 Constitution mandates. The MPR is
\ncurrently working on amendments to the Constitution.<\/p>\n
"There should be two phases of a presidential election. The
\nfirst is candidacy and the second is to elect the president and
\nvice president," Ramlan told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
In the first stage, the people would vote for political
\nparties, which already have presidential and vice presidential
\ncandidates.<\/p>\n
The presidential candidates would be selected from the two
\nparties that win the most votes. Then the people would directly
\nelect the president they like, he said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Smita Notosusanto of the Center for Electoral
\nReform (Cetro) doubted political parties' genuine intention to
\nendorse direct elections because all factions still wanted to
\ninvolve the MPR.<\/p>\n
Cetro has been campaigning for reform of the 1945 Constitution
\nand direct presidential elections.<\/p>\n
"The ongoing debate on direct presidential elections at the
\nMPR is only politicians' trick to make people think that they are
\nsensitive to public demand," Smita said.<\/p>\n
She stressed that as long as the MPR retained the authority to
\nelect the president and the vice president, horse-trading
\nresulting in a weak coalition government would also persist.
\n(09\/dja)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/president-must-be-peoples-choice-1447893297",
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