Party Funding Must Improve Quality of House

KOMPAS/WAWAN H PRABOWO

Flags of political parties participating in the 2019 elections adorn a overpass in the Senayan area, Jakarta, Sunday (7/4/2019). Political parties struggled to introduce their cadres to the public in the legislative elections, because they were preoccupied with efforts to win the presidential election that took place on the same day, which stole much of the public attention.

The Constitutional Court has issued its ruling on the dispute over the 2019 presidential election but not yet on the dispute over the results of the legislative election. The composition of the House of Representatives (DPR), therefore, remains unclear.

There is more clarity, meanwhile, on funds to be received by political parties from the state in 2019 and 2020. As reported earlier, the 10 political parties that have won seat in the House will this year receive Rp 121.92 billion in government assistance. Next year, the assistance will increase by around Rp 4.45 billion (Kompas, 21/6/2019).

The increase in government aid, which is mentioned in the state budget, does not look all that big. However, if we compare it with the number of parties that won seats in the DPR for the 2019-2024 period – which is lower than in the 2014-2019 period, the amount does look high. Ten parties have cadres in the legislature for the 2014-2019 period. The 2019 election, with a legislative threshold of 4 percent -- higher than in 2014 -- resulted in just nine parties being represented in the assembly. The number of seats in the DPR for the 2019-2024 period is 575, more than the 560 seats in the previous period.

The assistance funds for political parties may increase, because the matter will still be discussed between the government and the DPR. The House as a collection of party representatives certainly has an interest in assistance from the state. Assistance for political parties is based on Government Regulation (PP) No. 1/2018 concerning financial aid to political parties, amounting to Rp 1,000 per vote in the legislative election. The assistance is based on the votes acquired in the 2014 election. In 2020, it will be based on to the results of the 2019 election.

If you look at this situation and the position of the party as a very important institution in democracy, financial assistance from the government is indeed needed.

A Kompas survey last February showed that not many people were willing to donate to parties. Political parties rely on government assistance as well as donations from their members who become officials or legislative members and donations from other parties that are not binding. As a result, parties and their cadre are often involved in corruption. If you look at this situation and the position of the party as a very important institution in democracy, financial assistance from the government is indeed needed.

However, looking at the House\'s performance so far, it seems many are unwilling to give political parties money collected from taxpayers. Moreover, members of the House or the Regional Legislative Council (DPRD) were particularly often implicated in corruption from 2004-2018. Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) records show that a total of 998 people of various institutions were implicated in graft over that period, and legislative members accounted for the largest subset with 247 people.

The University of Indonesia\'s Center for Political Studies noted that the House for the 2019-2024 period was dominated by new faces, with around 65 percent of the seats taken by fresh entrants, while 94 previous members have regained legislative posts. The new faces at Senayan provide hope for a better performance. However, they need to be prepared.

The assistance for political parties should be allocated to prepare legislative members – as representatives of the people – for their duty. The parties need to announce their programs to improve the quality of their cadres at the DPR/DPRD. If that happens, of course, the people will be willing to use their money to get more qualified and better-performing representatives.