Golkar vying for young voters for 1997 election
Golkar vying for young voters for 1997 election
JAKARTA (JP): Although the general election is still two years away, the dominant political organization Golkar has begun serious preparations to woo the support of the young people, particularly of 21 million who will be voting for the first time.
Golkar chairman Harmoko launched yesterday a three-day course, for about 300 university students and young people, to become cadres of the political organization.
Their main task would be to win over the votes and support of their friends and colleagues.
"There are about 21 million first-time voters in the upcoming elections and Golkar sees them as a potential source to score another victory. Many of them are among you," Harmoko said in his speech welcoming the participants.
The students, who come from various university campuses in Jakarta, Bandung, Malang, Pontianak and Medan are volunteers, who joined the organization without involving their alma mater.
Golkar won 68 percent of the total votes in the 1992 general election, taking 282 of the 400 seats that were contested in the House of Representatives. Although still a landslide victory, it represented a decline over Golkar's 1987 performance, when it won 73 percent of the total votes.
When Harmoko was elected, in 1993, to chair Golkar, the first thing he promised was to reverse the trend and to ensure an even bigger victory in the 1997 election.
Yesterday, Harmoko called on the young Golkar cadres to make the upcoming elections a successful one for the organization.
He said the 1997 election will see an additional 25 seats to be contested because the Armed Forces (ABRI) representation in the house is being reduced from 100 to 75.
Golkar, he told the young people and students, should grab all the 25 extra seats.
The government has submitted a bill to the House of Representatives proposing to cut the number of ABRI seats. Officials said the bill should be endorsed in time for the 1997 elections.
Harmoko said, that on average, one house seat will require at least 400,000 votes.
"If Golkar intends to win all the 25 extra seats, it needs at least 10 million votes," he said. "The bulk of these votes should come from the young voters."
Harmoko said the leadership training programs are intended to provide knowledge, ability and motivation to young cadres to achieve the organization's goals.
Through the program, he said, Golkar urges students and young people to be actively involved in the organization's three-point success program: consolidation, supporting national development and winning the 1997 election.
Harmoko said Golkar is paying close attention to the needs of students and young people because they would, one day, lead the organization.
He denied the suggestion that Golkar does not cater to the need of the students.
"It is wrong to assume that Golkar is not familiar with students and their academic activities. Golkar considers that a conducive campus life is necessary for the development of fresh ideas and a sense of loyalty for the people," he said.
"Students looking for an atmosphere where they can fight for the people's welfare, and against poverty and injustice, can find it in Golkar," Harmoko said. (pwn)