Presidential Controversies

Jokowi has indeed prepared his "dynasty" from the start, so he just allows himself to be the object of debate.

KOMPAS/HERYUNANTO

Illustration

Asvi Marwan Adam's opinion, "Metamorphosis of a President" (Kompas, 27/3/2024), stimulates us to see the power of the President in another way.

The portrayal of President Joko Widodo's involvement in the nomination of Gibran Rakabuming Raka as a vice presidential candidate paired with Prabowo Subianto is reminiscent of the process that led to Abdurrahman Wahid's presidency in 1999. At that time, no one had imagined that Gus Dur would become president.

However, what was impossible became possible because of the intervention of power through the Central Axis.

The character is Amien Rais. Initially, Amien Rais supported Megawati Soekarnoputri, but then turned around. Gus Dur's appearance was surprising because the people he really favored at that time were BJ Habibie and Megawati. Long story short, Amien Rais, with his power as General Chair of the MPR, committed a kind of abuse of power.

Also read: Metamorphosis of a President

Did Jokowi commit abuse of power for Gibran? The ethical answer, Jokowi is the king maker. Wawan Sobari in his article, "Reinterpretation of King Maker 2024" (Kompas, 24/9/2022), defines king maker as an individual who determines leadershipthrough its political influence because it has great power to make someone a candidate in the election.

The candidates selected can be in the same direction as public support or not in the same direction.

Like Gus Dur, Gibran's appearance seemed ad hoc. While Amien is a party politician who easily takes advantage of the Central Axis, Jokowi is a non-party politician, but he is included in the citizens' electoral decisions. This is what caused Prabowo's coalition party to lose the power to reject Gibran in accordance with the king maker's aspirations

However, the election of Prabowo-Gibran was not entirely determined by Jokowi's influence when compared to the votes garnered by PSI led by Kaesang Pangarep, Jokowi's son. We believe that the majority of the people chose Prabowo-Gibran because their programs are more realistic and promising.

This seems to be well realized by both the 01 and 03 camps, as in the presidential election dispute, the President was more often raised as the object of debate. However, the President was not present to explain his stance and political policies. Indeed, it appeared as though he ignored them.

Jokowi's Psychopolitics

Why is the president remaining silent? The most plausible possibility is that both 01 and 03 have contributed to him. Jokowi is not someone who is unaware of the contributions of the PDI Perjuangan for him and Gibran. Another reason is that Jokowi has been preparing his "dynasty" from the beginning, so he just lets himself become the object of debate.

The psychopolitics he played succeeded in attracting public sympathy so that when he was accused of nepotism in Gibran's candidacy, the public still supported him.

The basic need for a presidential election is for us to have a president leading this country. Not power.

Jokowi understands very well that power is not subjectivity, not leadership, but structural and symbolic. Power becomes strong if it works in a network so that it regulates the subjects, objects and processes of power. This domination not only penetrates the social body, but also extends to the most individual and intimate behavior.

"Cawe-cawe," sitting down to eat together with the party leader, is an effort to tame political parties. The reason is clichéd. The President wants to ensure that the presidential and legislative elections run smoothly for the sake of the nation and state. And, we all seem to be mesmerized by this gesture.

Indeed, it is very difficult to argue from the perspective of building a healthy and dignified political life to see someone like Jokowi undergo such a metamorphosis. However, in the political process of power everywhere on this earth, nothing is impossible.

Therefore, enough is enough. From this commotion, there is an important lesson that needs to be observed. Firstly, Jokowi is very skilled at playing psychopolitics to appeal to the public's sympathy. He combines the use of authoritative and masculine power with cooperative and feminine power. He relies on the power of self-control, the power of concrete action, and the power of relationships.

Prabowo-Gibran will continue this pattern to maintain the support of the public who sympathize and love Jokowi. Therefore, if 01 and 03 decide to become the opposition, they should make more effort in playing opposing psychopolitical tactics to win public sympathy and thus be more capable of correcting the attitude and policies of Prabowo-Gibran in the future.

Launching criticism as was done in the 2024 presidential election campaign/debate has proven unable to attract public sympathy.

Second, the metamorphosis of the President shows that political unity is very vulnerable to interests. The construction of our Indonesian identity is the result of continuous reconfiguration. This reconfiguration sometimes creates wounds and inflammation that can tear the nation apart. The basic need for presidential elections is to have a president to lead this country. Not power.

Also read: Reinterpretation of ”King Maker” 2024

The election is over. At a time when the country desires tranquility so that the people can build their lives comfortably, we hope that whatever decision the Constitutional Court makes will be accepted with an open heart. "The future of Indonesia is 200 million gaping mouths," writes poet Taufiq Ismail, "return Indonesia to me."

JB Kleden,Lecturer at the Kupang State Institute of Christian Religion