Grand Coalition Without "Opposition", A Gamble for Democracy

A government that accommodates all political parties without "opposition" is a sign of the end of democracy.

KOMPAS/FAKHRI FADLURROHMAN

The General Chairman of the Gelora Party Anis Matta, the General Chairman of the Golkar Party Airlangga Hartarto, the General Chairman of the Gerindra Party and presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto, the General Chairman of the PAN Zulkifli Hasan, and the General Chairman of the Crescent Star Party Yusril Ihza Mahendra (from left to right) posed for a photo together at the Golkar Party Headquarters in Jakarta on Thursday (14/9/2023).

One hour after being declared as the president-elect by the General Elections Commission on Wednesday afternoon, Prabowo Subianto was already at the headquarters of the Party of the Nation's Awakening, Jakarta. The Chairman of the Gerindra Party, who was wearing a white safari shirt, black pants, and a black cap was welcomed by the Chairman of PKB Muhaimin Iskandar, who was wearing a similar attire. The two political party leaders who previously competed in the 2024 Presidential Election walked side by side on the red carpet laid in front of the PKB Central Executive Board Building.

Prabowo and Muhaimin, both accompanied by a number of party elites, entered the second floor meeting room of the building. They spoke privately for about an hour. After the closed meeting, they met with the media with smiling faces. Muhaimin congratulated Prabowo and his running mate, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, on their election and expressed willingness to support the 2024-2029 government.

Responding to Muhaimin's support, Prabowo said that the election is over. The contestation has indeed been fierce, but the elites must unite after it. As the winner of the presidential election, Prabowo is committed to embracing all political forces, not only those who support him, but also those in the opposing camp. "Only by uniting and working together, we will achieve the aspirations of our nation," he said.

In the 2024 presidential election, the National Awakening Party (PKB) is one of the parties supporting the pair Anies Basweedan-Muhaimin Iskandar apart from the Nasdem Party and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS). Before joining the coalition, PKB formed a coalition with the Gerindra Party to support Prabowo. However, PKB canceled the political collaboration because it did not get the opportunity to make Muhaimin Prabowo's companion.

KOMPAS/HENDRA A SETYAWAN

The elected presidential candidate for 2024-2029, Prabowo Subianto, met with the chairman of the National Awakening Party (PKB), Muhaimin Iskandar, at the PKB Headquarters in Jakarta on Wednesday (April 24, 2024).

Not only PKB, the Nasdem Party also expressed official support for Prabowo-Gibran the day after. This statement was conveyed by the General Chairman of Nasdem Surya Paloh who visited Prabowo's residence on Jalan Kertanegara, Jakarta, Thursday (25/4/2024) afternoon. Nasdem, in fact, has firmly expressed its readiness to join the ranks of political parties supporting the Prabowo-Gibran government. Previously, Prabowo also visited the DPP Nasdem Office, Jakarta, at the end of March.

Member of the Gerindra Party Advisory Board Wihadi Wiyanto in the talk show One ​​Table The Forum which was broadcast on Kompas TV, Wednesday (1/5/2024) evening , said that the meeting with a number of political parties outside the Advanced Indonesia Coalition (KIM) was a realization of Prabowo's commitment to embrace all elements of the nation to develop Indonesia. He did not deny that embracing what Prabowo meant meant inviting all political parties to become part of the government coalition. However, this cannot be done without aligning the previous vision and mission.

Also read: The Prabowo Coalition has prepared ministerial quotas for PKB and Nasdem

Therefore, communication with the four political parties outside the coalition is still ongoing. However, two of the mentioned parties, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), are still unable to directly communicate with Prabowo.

"Communication is still being conducted at the party leadership level to provide understanding and a shared vision and mission. However, we see that each party has its limitations, for example, communication that has not yet been established directly with Mr. Prabowo is from the PDI-P because they are still waiting for the national working meeting. The PKS is also still waiting for the consultation of the Majelis Syuro," said Wihadi.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

The elected president of the 2024 elections, Prabowo Subianto, embraced National Democrat Party Chairman Surya Paloh after holding a press conference following their meeting at Prabowo's house on Kertanegara Street, Jakarta, Thursday (4/25/2024).

According to him, there will be no problem if all political parties join the Prabowo-Gibran government coalition. The control mechanism in the government is also believed not to be disrupted. Even if all political parties are in the same line, the DPR will still criticize the government without any commotion. Thus, the stability of the country remains intact.

"In essence, as a coalition, we need stability, whether it's political, economic, or security stability. The problem is, if we are not stable, how can we build for the welfare and justice of society? This is not the same problem as during the New Order era, but we do need stability," said Wihadi.

Apart from Wihadi, the talk with the theme "Fighting for Ministerial Chairs" which was hosted by senior journalist for the daily Kompas Budiman Tanuredjo, also featured Secretary of the Democratic Party's High Council Andi Mallarangeng, PKS Spokesperson Pipin Sopian, and diversity thinker Sukidi. Also present online was PKB Deputy Secretary General Syaiful Huda.

There will be no problem if all political parties join the Prabowo-Gibran government coalition. The control mechanism in the government is also believed to be undisturbed.

Syaiful Huda confirmed that during his meeting with Muhaimin, Prabowo conveyed that the government formed still needs the support of political parties outside of its coalition. In this context, PKB agreed to support Prabowo-Gibran to continue the cooperation that has been established in President Joko Widodo and Vice President Ma'ruf Amin's government coalition. However, there have been no discussions yet regarding the distribution of power in the future government.

"When we met Mr. Prabowo, the initial framework was that Indonesia needs togetherness to face the crisis that we will encounter in the coming years. As for the ministerial affairs, it is the President's and KIM's domain, which has already become a part of Mr. Prabowo's coalition's strength," said Huda.

Still need opposition

Andi Mallarangeng stated that it is understandable if Prabowo tries to embrace political parties outside of the KIM. This is because effective governance requires the support of a majority of political parties that own seats in parliament. Meanwhile, the four KIM parties that made it to parliament - Golkar, Gerindra, Democrat, and the National Mandate Party (PAN) - only control 48 percent of the total seats in the DPR.

"Meaning, it needs support from one or two more parties. But not all (should enter the government), because if all, there will be no opposition," said Andi. The existence of opposition parties, he continued, is important to maintain Indonesia's democracy. However, the government still needs voices from outside the government.

KOMPAS/ WAWAN H PRABOWO

President Joko Widodo, along with Vice President Ma'ruf Amin, is preparing to announce the names of ministers who will be inaugurated at the Merdeka Palace on Wednesday (23/10/2019).

In addition, Andi also emphasized the consistency of political party support for the Prabowo-Gibran-formed government. Political parties that have declared their joining of the coalition government should not fail to support government programs.

"The important thing is that anyone, whether they support 01 (Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar's camp) or 03 (Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud MD's camp), if they join the Prabowo government coalition, they must be consistent. Don't let it be like now, where they are inside the government but have an opposition feeling," he said.

Pipin Sopian stated that, although he still communicates with Prabowo's camp, his party has not yet decided on an official stance for the next five years. Decision-making in PKS must go through the Musyawarah Majelis Syura mechanism, which consists of 99 members and takes into account the desires of all members and officials from the grassroots to the highest level. Until now, it has not been determined when the Musyawarah Majelis Syura will be held.

Also read: Prabowo-Gibran Camps Have Different Opinions, Democrats Consider Important "Friends" for Debate in Parliament

Drawing from experience, a certain political party has been involved in the government coalition of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for 10 years. The same party has also been outside of the government during two terms of President Joko Widodo's leadership. In both positions, according to Pipin, the party remained consistent in their role as political opposition. They continued to design and implement programs needed by the community while leading several ministries, or voiced critical aspirations of the public when outside of the government.

"So, for us, whether we are inside or outside government, we are focused," said Pipin.

The future of democracy

Efforts to bring all political parties outside the KIM into the government coalition, according to Sukidi, show a new phase of Indonesian democracy that is leading to authoritarian populism. This happened because there was an attempt to thicken executive power by attracting all power to the government coalition and eliminating powers outside the government. "Executive power that is too thick and large ultimately operates without a check and balances mechanism from either the judiciary or the legislature," he said.

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

Diversity thinker Sukidi

Furthermore, there is a lack of civil society and intellectual control because the executive has taken systematic steps to silence their voices. For example, by implementing policies for selecting campus officials that are determined by the executive. As a result, arbitrary power can run relatively without meaningful criticism from all levels.

Sukidi continued, the damage to democracy has become increasingly severe because it seems to have public approval through elections. The majority of the community still chooses executive leaders who are associated with behavior that violates democratic norms. "This is very dangerous, because democracy is treated no more than a show of democracy. There are elections, political parties exist, but the substance and unwritten norms of democracy have been so badly damaged," he said.

Also read: Prabowo-Gibran Coalition Takes Control of Parliament

According to Sukidi, if the Prabowo-Gibran government truly accommodates all political party power without leaving any power outside the government, it is a sign that Indonesian democracy has ended. The community will become more subordinate to a strong state that may not necessarily be oriented towards the interests of the people. "Goodbye democracy, welcome authoritarian populism," he said.