Golkar on Three-Stage Election Proposal: Bill Draft Not Yet Ready

Golkar Party’s Secretary-General, Muhammad Sarmuji, responded to reports about a proposed election system that would reportedly be divided into three stages.

Sarmuji said he did not know where the information had come from, as no draft of the Election Bill had been completed so far.

“There is no Election Bill yet. So I don’t know where the bill being circulated came from. But there is no draft of the Election Bill so far; it has not been completed,” Sarmuji said in Makassar on Saturday (17 October).

He said the party was gathering input from regional legislative council members on issues to be pursued in the revision of the Election Law.

“We will propose a parliamentary threshold of around 5 per cent, which could be exactly 5 per cent or slightly lower,” he said.

Sarmuji said discussions within Golkar on the bill were intended to produce regulations that would improve the country while also supporting the party’s interests in the coming election.

He said Golkar aimed to increase its number of legislative seats at the next election, improving on its performance in the 2024 election.

“Our focus is on gaining seats. We don’t know how many more, but we will try to gain seats. What must be ensured is that we increase our seats compared with 2024,” he said.

Sarmuji said adding seats was a target Golkar had to pursue. Failure to increase its seat tally would mean the party had failed to carry out its political duties.

Asked whether Golkar cadres currently serving in the Cabinet could stand as legislative candidates, Sarmuji said all party members had the opportunity to contest the election.

“Yes, God willing, they will all stand as candidates, including the party chairman, who will run in Papua,” he said.