Presidential platforms

At present, the nation is witnessing a flurry of political parties, with their presidential hopefuls -- or those who think they also deserve the seat -- courting running mates for the July 5 direct presidential election, or lobbying other parties or groups in an effort to strengthen their power base to contest the election.

As this is the first time the country will experience a direct presidential election, media coverage on candidates is often no different to the way the media covers gossip on celebrities. For sure, the July 5 election will be much more interesting to observe than the April 5 legislative election.

Gen. (ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been the candidate most quick, compared with other nominees, to select his partner. His choice is Jusuf Kalla, a respected business tycoon from eastern Indonesia and a former coordinating minister of President Megawati Soekarnoputri. The general is regarded as Megawati's strongest contender in the election.

Realizing that she is in dire need of fresh blood to compensate for her declining popularity, Megawati has managed to pair up with Hasyim Muzadi, the chairman of the country's largest Muslim organization, the Nahdlatul Ulama. Meanwhile, the Golkar Party candidate, Gen. (ret) Wiranto, as of Sunday afternoon was still seeking his vice presidential nominee. Other candidates could still appear by May 12, the registration deadline for candidates.

We are encouraged by the ongoing democratic selection process. Judging by the largely peaceful and fair legislative election in April, there are strong grounds to believe that the presidential election will be democratic and peaceful, too.

However, we are also concerned that the process so far has focused mainly on the personalities and not their five-year programs. There is unlikely to be a significant difference between the legislative and presidential election campaigns in terms of an absence of debate on substantive issues. During the legislative election campaign, political parties rarely talked about their programs: They preferred to entertain audiences with dangdut rather than dialog.

At that time, many of the parties argued that they would announce their comprehensive policy package only when their candidates ran for the presidency. A major political party even boasted that it had prepared a very detailed program, for both the short and long term, for its presidential candidate.

With the start of the presidential election campaign only one month away, we have yet to see any effort by candidates to communicate with the public or disseminate their vision for the nation. Will we have to wait until the campaigning period next month?

The public has a right to know their platforms with regard to the economy, education, law enforcement, corruption eradication and poverty alleviation, to mention but a few. People also have the right to know just how their prospective leader plans to lead them in the next five years.

We are of the view that public debate between the candidates is one of the most effective ways for candidates to convey their vision, while for the public, it has the opportunity to compare directly one candidate with another. Megawati should decline no longer to take part in such debates, as she did five years ago.

It would be a grave insult to the intelligence if presidential candidates again asked potential supporters simply to sing or dance with them during their campaigns. Without violating the prevailing rules, such as that on premature campaigning, it is time now for the nominees to face the public and reveal their vision and mission. Let voters form a judgment based on their convictions about candidates' programs, not just their popularity.

Controversy exists with regard to military candidates, given fears that the nation's journey toward the achievement of strong civil society would be endangered should military figures return to power. However, there is as yet no concrete vision from the civilian side on how to counter the trend, either. Therefore, voters cannot be dissuaded from supporting military candidates without providing them with much more convincing alternatives.

We hope that the nation will not only be able to enjoy a peaceful and democratic presidential election, but also one that will provide us with a new leader who has strong vision, political will and the capability to carry out his or her programs in order to lead the nation to better times.