DPR: Voter Education for Beginners Crucial for Quality Democracy
Bandarlampung (ANTARA) - Member of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR) Commission II, Rycko Menoza, stated that political education for first-time voters needs to be conducted continuously as an effort to improve the quality of democracy in Indonesia while producing a generation of responsible voters.
“Our hope is that through this continuous education, the quality of future elections can be better, both in terms of the people voting and the figures being elected,” Rycko Menoza said when confirmed in Bandarlampung on Saturday.
According to him, as a member of Commission II of the DPR, which partners with election organisers, outreach activities within the community play a strategic role in improving political literacy, especially for first-time voters who will exercise their right to vote for the first time.
He said political education must provide the public with an understanding of the significance of a single vote in determining the direction of regional and national development.
Rycko explained that Indonesia’s direct democracy system has been in place since 2004, so continuous evaluation of its implementation is necessary to improve the quality of elections, both in terms of the public’s maturity in exercising their right to vote and the integrity of the elected leaders.
He invited first-time voters, including Generation Z, to exercise their right to vote responsibly, because every vote cast will determine the future of economic development, infrastructure, and public welfare.
“The one vote they cast will greatly influence the future of the region, the province, and the nation. We certainly do not want the growth and development of a region to be slow because its leader betrays the mandate and becomes entangled in legal issues,” he said.
He added that various public policies that directly impact people’s lives, such as fuel prices, staple food prices, and infrastructure development, are the result of political decisions made through the democratic process.
According to him, increasing political awareness among young voters is an important factor in electing leaders who are clean, accountable, and have integrity, thereby maintaining the stability of regional and national development.
Continuous voter education, he said, can minimise various potential legal and ethical violations in the administration of elections, while strengthening the quality of public participation in democratic life.