Direct election and public welfare

Tata Mustasya, Jakarta

After directly electing the President last year, many people have great expectations of the direct elections of local government leaders, like governors, regents and mayors. It is believed that a directly elected local government head would better manage public policy as they would have a direct mandate from the voters.

In reality, however, the relationship between democracy and welfare is not that simple, particularly in the short-run. Indra J. Piliang (Kompas, March 29, 2005), for example, questioned the government's promotion of the regional elections. In his opinion, the government should prioritize people's welfare through programs such as poverty eradication and employment reduction rather than the elections.

Even in the long-run, democracy does not automatically improve people's welfare. The mechanism is complicated and strongly dependent on real societal conditions, like the economy and the distribution of political power. In this context, we must make every effort to optimize the benefits of the regional leadership elections.

In his book, The Future of Freedom, Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad, Fareed Zakaria distinguished democracy and what he called constitutional liberalism.

Many people are under the impression that democracy automatically improves social welfare. Empirically, however, it is not democracy but constitutional liberalism that has a direct positive effect on government policy and the welfare of the people. Included in constitutional liberalism is equality before the law, ownership guarantees and protection, and the division of power into some branches.

Trends in developing countries have shown different results. Democracy often fails to create or strengthen constitutional liberalism. Democracy has often resulted in "bad" leaders in developing countries.

The question is, can the direct elections of local government heads -- which requires a huge budget -- improve constitutional liberalism and the people's welfare at a local level?

There are at least three factors that influence the success of an election.

First, the strength of the electoral system, rules, and the readiness of election officers. A poorly orchestrated election could mean the election of incapable leaders, which would leave the public worse-off rather than better-off after the election.

Continuous control and the evaluation of systems and rules is crucial. If adequate preparations have not been made, delaying the elections would be advisable.

The second factor is the distribution of political power and the economic condition. One of the necessary conditions for a successful election is a strong middle-class presence in the regions.

A small number of powerful figures could very easily influence votes in regions where the middle class is a minority. It would be worse in regions where the population is largely poor. In the regions, voters would choose the richest candidates regardless of their competence.

Third, how significant is the authority of local governments to improve constitutional liberalism and public policy? High-profile local government leaders can not govern effectively if they lack authority. In optimizing the benefits of the direct elections, the reduction of regional authority under central government supervision as stipulated in Law No 32/2004 becomes a serious problem.

Even without direct elections, some local governments have already made breakthroughs in achieving good governance. The success of Solok regency in West Sumatra and Jembarana regency in Bali, in fighting rampant corruption and in providing better education and health services are real examples.

Politically, directly elected regional government heads can also play a role in the balance of power. This would minimize centralized power and policies that, based on empirical data, do more harm than good for local people.

Because of its importance, all stakeholders should contribute so that the direct elections bring to power competent local government leaders.

The writer is a researcher at The Indonesian Institute and can be reached at mustasyat@yahoo.com.