By: Agustinus Situmorang *
The Islamic Community Forum (FUI) will hold Apple Siaga 313 in all KPU offices throughout Indonesia on Sunday (31/3). The white nuances were also attended by several mass organizations such as FPI, GNPF, PA 212 and various Islamic mass organizations.
Muhammad Al Khattath as Secretary General of the FUI also appealed to CSO leaders in other regions outside Jakarta to form a joint committee to mobilize their mass to whitewash the KPU at the provincial, regency and city levels on the same day. He said that the 313 movement was aimed at demanding that the KPU organize elections that were clean, honest, fair and without fraud. In addition, it also demands that all parties participating in the election participate in creating a similar situation. This is considered as one of the efforts to delegitimize the KPU as a neutral and independent state institution.
Minister of Home Affairs (Mendagri) Tjahjo Kumolo highlighted the parties who deliberately delegitimated the General Election Commission (KPU) and Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) ahead of the 2019 Election. Tjahjo considered that the KPU and Bawaslu were scapegoats in the movement. This statement responded to the results of the SMRC survey which noted that there were 23-25 percent of Prabowo-Sandi supporters and 4-5 percent of Jokowo supporters who did not believe in the KPU’s performance.
“I need to stop the delegitimation of the KPU and Bawaslu, because that is something that scapegoats. That is something that I think is not right, “said Tjahjo.
It also asked all parties to dismiss various efforts that could bring down the KPU’s image with issues that caused public scandal. He asked the public to provide support to the KPU to hold quality elections. He also asked certain groups not to overwhelm the KPU to corner the KPU. Like the Alert Apple Action held by the FUI Muslim Forum.
“With the existence of an individual group that angles the KPU and Bawaslu that should not be done. Especially until the demo in front of the KPU. If there are inputs, suggestions, I think the KPU opens itself, “he said.
Furthermore, Tjahjo assured that the KPU as the organizer of the election had applied professionally.
“The performance of the KPU and Bawaslu that began since the elections, was carried out with full responsibility, full of professional processes,” he said.
Of course people are asked not to be easily provoked by this movement. Although it is rarely heard, FUI is also known as an intolerant and radical organization. Previously, FUI Jogja had also threatened cross-religious events in Yogyakarta to celebrate the birth of Prophet Muhammad and Jesus Christ with the aim of presenting a peaceful message from the two figures. The event was organized by the Indonesian Young Interfaith Peacemaker Comunity.
At that time the committee said that it had received a threat from a radical group called the Islamic Community Forum (FUI). The threat made the Islamic Republic of Indonesia (PIRI) have to withdraw their permission for the Young Interfaith Peacemaker Community (YIPC), the interfaith peace activist group to use the space.
Yogyakarta FUI commander Muhammad Fuad said that his group would dissolve the event if the YIPC continued their plans. “We will close the program because combining the Mawlid Prophet and Christmas means opposing Islamic aqeedah,” he said.
The track record shows that FUI is a mass organization that is quite radical and intolerant, so that in mobilizing the masses in the Alert Apple which will be held on March 31, it is certainly necessary to be aware of any provocation or horizontal conflict that might occur. Meanwhile, the KPU has also invited to express aspirations, but will receive representatives of mass action if there is time.
However, until now Arief Budiman as the Chair of the KPU claimed that he had not received a notice of the action on March 31, 2019. But he would confirm it further regarding the notice. Meanwhile, related to the mass action demands of 313 which asked the KPU to ensure the 2019 Election ran clean, Arief said that the KPU had no time to think fraudulently because it was busy working.
“Yes, the KPU has run it cleanly. It’s bad when the KPU cheats. You see myself from morning, it doesn’t stop working. This will end up completing many letters later. After that the plenary meeting was continued. I didn’t have time to think that was not good, I didn’t have time, he thought well. Just think that cheating doesn’t have time, “said Arief.
* The author is an observer of political issues