The Jakarta gubernatorial election on April 19, 2017, will attract public attention both at the national and international level.
The Jakarta gubernatorial election was the regional election with the tightest competition. The competition is intensifying in line with the massive penetration of social media. The content produced by social media increasingly makes people worry about the condition of the capital city of Jakarta.
Intimidating threats and statements spread on the social media. Provocative political maneuvering can increase political tension. Vote buying through the distribution of money or goods clearly degrades the meaning of democracy itself, even though in reality the recipients are happy.
That method is not elegant and does not lead to a mature democracy. The laws on the implementation of general elections have to be upheld in the face of money politics behavior and also the intimidating statements because they are threatening democracy.
We are grateful that the government is committed to guaranteeing security in Jakarta. A total of 62,000 members of the National Police, the Indonesian Military and civilian security personnel are being deployed. According to Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto, the state protects citizens with voting rights. The state is in charge of building a situation that is conducive to peace, quiet and without intimidation. However, Wiranto also reminded the public not to be affected by provocation and intimidation. The police ensured police and military members would be at each polling station. However, neutrality of the military and police in the election is badly needed.
Up to 7.2 million Jakarta residents will exercise their voting rights. Use the right to vote with joy and excitement. The votes of Jakarta residents do not only determine the future of Jakarta, but the future of Indonesia. With help from the security forces, we hope we can enjoy the revelry of the election to be held today.
We remind the organizers of the election, both the General Election Commission (KPU) and the General Election Supervisory Board (Bawaslu), to ensure the election goes smoothly, honestly, fairly, directly, freely and secretly. There is no need to persuade or intimidate others to choose or not choose a particular candidate. Let the Jakarta residents decide who will lead Jakarta in the 2017 to 2019 period. The candidates have to be wiser in words so as to help keep the Jakarta gubernatorial election calm.
A number of pollsters will announce the results several hours after the polling stations are closed. The results of the quick counts are not official results. The one that has the authority to determine the vote count results is the Jakarta General Election Commission through manual counting done in stages. Counting disputes have to be resolved through democratic mechanisms in the Constitutional Court.