Candidates told to unveil aids
Kurniawan Hari, Jakarta
In an attempt to convince voters of the prospects of their administrations, presidential candidates Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Megawati Soekarnoputri need to disclose their respective Cabinet lineup before the election runoff, experts say.
They believe disclosure of the lineups will also bring the candidates closer to the electorate, given the General Elections Commission (KPU) decision to allocate only three days for campaigning for the two contenders.
The cabinets the candidates offer will also encourage people to exercise their right to vote, the observers say.
"Revealing the composition of the Cabinet will help voters examine the track records of the ministerial candidates and determine their choices," political analyst Fachry Ali told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
He added that people were relatively well informed about the quality of the presidential candidates and their running mates.
"Now is the time for voters to know who will assist the presidential candidates," he said.
Krisna Harahap, a legal expert, concurred with Fachry, saying revelation of the Cabinet lineups would help people understand the policy commitments of the presidential candidates.
"I think the candidates should appoint professionals to their cabinets. The candidates should avoid horse trading purely to accommodate the interests of other political parties," said Krisna, a former member of the Constitutional Commission.
Separately, KPU member Hamid Awaluddin said his team had met with strategists of both the candidates to discuss campaign- related issues.
According to Hamid, both contenders had agreed that there would be no street rallies, public gatherings or mass mobilization during the three-day official campaigning period.
"Both teams prefer to use media campaigns, in either the print or electronic media," Hamid said.
KPU deputy chairman Ramlan Surbakti added that his office was giving consideration to allowing both candidates' teams to place campaign paraphernalia in public places before the start of the campaigning period.
"Images of the presidential candidates, for example, could be displayed in strategic places," he said.
The campaign period will run from Sept. 14 through Sept. 16.
Hamid said campaigning would be allowed on those days only, and KPU officials would prohibit it at any other time.
Article 4 of the law on presidential elections says that activities may be categorized as campaigning if they are carried out by presidential candidates, their running mates or their campaign teams, or aimed at wooing voters, through dissemination of the manifestos of presidential candidates, in written form or in speeches, within the timeframe set by the KPU.
Hamid said the KPU would meet again with the candidates' campaign teams to discuss technical matters in the campaigns.