The search for good politicians

Elwin Tobing, The Indonesian Institute Iowa, U.S., elwin@theindonesianinstitute.org

There are good and bad politicians in government: Some try to clean it up; others try to clean it out, wrote Robert Orben.

Just as there is good and bad in everything, there are good politicians and bad politicians. For bad politicians, politics is everything. No wonder, when it comes to a policy making process they always politicize it because they see policy as less important than politics. Politics, when played by bad politicians will end up just like what another writer, Dalton Camp, remarked, "(it) is made up largely of irrelevancies." When politicians said a few months ago that there was no terrorist group in Indonesia or ignored that possibility, that was when bad politicians were playing politics.

Having politicized every policy making process, bad politicians prioritize attacking personalities rather than examining and debating other politicians' policy proposals.

Good politicians meanwhile talk first about policies that can make their country better and then ask who are the right persons are to execute the policies. Realizing diversity, good politicians search for common ground and adjust their proposals without destroying their goals. In other words, they build political consensus regarding policies and persons.

As Indonesia grows larger and even more diverse (in terms of economy and population), fundamental disagreements over how to address any given issue are likely to grow even more intense. To avoid a jam over the policy decision process, the country needs people who know how to provide stability, to accommodate different points of view and to build consensus. That is what good politicians do: Function and enhance democracy. They make democratic government possible in a nation that is filled with competing interests and they make the country work.

But the first step toward having more good politicians is to attract more good people to politics -- which requires throwing away prejudices of race, religion or ethnic background. The next step is to launch a national campaign to make sure that criminals in public service, in the executive, legislative and judicial branches, are given exemplary punishment. Citizens should ensure, through networking and public campaign, that people with criminal records never get involved in elections, never get elected and never get appointed to public office.

All corruption cases have involved, in one way or another, government officials. And worse, the verification of corrupt politicians is often obstructed by the government. Therefore, to get rid of bad politicians requires good, efficient and honest government officials.

As the 2004 general election is not far away, people should start observing politicians thoroughly, and search for role models for the young generation to follow.

We are not looking for a perfect people; our responsibility is to find people in our neighborhood with understandable concerns, mind-set, and above all, commitment to public service and a sense of duty towards our nation. Like it or not, it is that famous quote of John F. Kennedy "... ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country...", which becomes very relevant when it comes to a career in politics, particularly in a nation like ours.