In facing the 2024 General Election for President and Vice President (Pilpres), the issue of abstention is becoming a major focus. One political communications expert, Emrus Sihombing, firmly warned success teams and political parties to be wary of the potential for abstention among young voters. The phenomenon of mutual reporting that occurs, especially among Generation Z, is a serious concern for Emrus.
In a political discussion in Central Jakarta some time ago, political communication expert Emrus Sihombing expressed his concern about the phenomenon he observed, namely reporting to each other among Generation Z. According to him, this generation tends to experience abstention and responded with the question, “Why report to each other?” Emrus emphasized that reporting to each other should only be done in criminal cases such as crimes or crimes, and not for matters that are merely opinions. This view was expressed firmly, highlighting the importance of understanding the limits in reporting a problem.
In an effort to maintain the continuity of democracy, Emrus highlighted the urgency to motivate political participation among young voters. For him, a polite and civilized involvement is needed, involving 2024 election participants, success teams and political parties as parties involved.
Emrus emphasized the importance of avoiding direct and indirect confrontation, both through verbal and nonverbal communication symbols, to create a moral and ethical political environment. This view reflects an effort to invite all parties involved in the political process to maintain ethics in competing for electoral success.
Emrus emphasized that ethical and moral politics must be put forward, more important than electoral politics which tends to ignore ethical principles. In his view, electoral politics which only pursues victory can justify any means. However, if moral and ethical politics are put forward, the fight will revolve more around thoughts and ideas.
In this situation, Emrus issued a warning so that parties who are unsuccessful in the 2024 elections can play an important role as a monitoring and balancing group in the government system. He emphasized the need to have clear boundaries, namely that they should not join the ruling party in order to create a control and balance mechanism.
Emrus said that understanding political integrity and ethics is a significant first step in anticipating potential abstentions, which often arise due to dissatisfaction with political practices that are considered immoral.
Along with the determination of three pairs of presidential and vice presidential candidates by the Indonesian General Election Commission (KPU) on Monday, November 13 2023, the 2024 Election is becoming the main focus on the Indonesian political stage.
The results of the serial number drawing on Tuesday, November 14 2023, determined Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar serial number 1, Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka serial number 2, and Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud MD serial number 3. With the campaign period which will start on November 28 2023 to 10 February 2024, and voting on 14 February 2024, the political awareness of young voters will be the main determinant in maintaining the stability and continuity of democracy.
At the local level, a young politician from the Lombok Island electoral district, Rannya Agustyra Kristiono, paid special attention to the role of young people in building political participation. The 2024 Legislative Election (Pileg) on Lombok Island will involve a small number of young politicians, and Rannya is trying to be a voice for the millennial generation and Gen Z. He is actively holding events with millennials and Gen Z, highlighting their important role in the democratic process.
Rannya Agustyra Kristiono, enthusiastically, said that he was a young man who represented this group in the world of politics. He expressed his desire for other young people to actively participate in exercising their political rights in the 2024 elections. This statement reflects that his role is not only limited to representing the people, but also as a driving force that encourages political involvement from young voters.
In the context of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Province, Rannya Agustyra Kristiono highlighted the significant number of first-time voters. He underlined that the millennial generation and Gen Z who will be involved in the 2024 presidential and legislative elections in NTB Province reach 2.1 million people, out of a total of around 3.9 million voters. Rannya emphasized that more than half of the voters were young people.
He motivated his fellow youth not to abstain, because their active participation was considered to determine the direction of regional progress. According to him, this is also part of the preparations for a golden Indonesia in 2045, where young people are expected to play a dominant role in Indonesia’s future development.
Ahead of the 2024 elections, it is important for all parties involved in the political process to build political awareness among young voters. Civilized communication, maintaining political ethics, and exploring the positive potential of young political representation can be the key to avoiding abstention which can be detrimental to democracy. Every young voter’s voice has important weight in shaping the nation’s future.
As the candidate pairs are determined and the campaign schedule approaches, political awareness must continue to be increased. The election process is not only an arena for power struggles, but also an important event that determines the direction of the nation.
Therefore, let’s work together to build an Indonesia that is democratic, has integrity, and involves all levels of society, especially the younger generation, as the backbone of the nation who will determine Indonesia’s future.
