On good and genuine candidates

On good and genuine candidates

The culture of Indonesia does not lend itself to straight
talking, especially in the area of criticism against individuals.
In the case of rotten legislators (and we must accept there are
some) then, to publish a list can be viewed in more than one way.

The General Elections Commission (KPU) has a duty to educate
the public regarding electoral procedures, but this would not
cover the personal performances of would-be legislators. Most
people do not have the time or the opportunity to find out in
depth the quality and character of the candidates, and so (to be
fair to the electorate) someone, or some body needs to provide
that information.

If producing a blacklist (which is the intention) would cause
considerable agitation, then the alternative could be to issue a
list that only contains the names of the good candidates, with a
short write-up of what they have done, or intend to do.

Megawati tells the nation that they must vote for good
leaders, and the only way that people will know who is good and
who is bad is for them to see whose name appears on the good list
and why. There is no reason why such a list cannot be nationally
advertised, as it is complimentary to individuals and of course
informative to the electorate.

Also, as a matter of course, there should be a small but
detailed write up of all would-be candidates so that people can
sensibly decide who to vote for and can also see what vision a
particular candidate has for the region and for the nation. That
should be a minimum requirement, and what is said in the pamphlet
should be a commitment to the voters that candidates can be held
accountable to as time goes by.

People simply want to know who is genuine and who really
cares for the region, its people and development, and the country
as a whole.

If you go the other way and issue a blacklist, then the legal
boys (who are having a wonderful time in this country) will be
rubbing their hands together as they pile in the money from libel
cases.

DAVID WALLIS
Medan, North Sumatra