By : Eva Kalyna Audrey )*
Ahead of the 2024 elections, the public is asked to increase their vigilance because there have been provocations so that they reject this 5 yearly program. Don’t let them believe in hoaxes, propaganda and provocations that have the potential to derail the 2024 elections. Elections are a mandatory agenda and cannot be contested, and inciting the Indonesian people to reject them is a crime.
Elections (general elections) will be held in February 2924, and preparations must be made from now on so that later they will go well. All elements of society synergize to create peaceful elections and support the government, KPU and all other parties. Peace must be maintained so that elections take place smoothly without any riots.
One of the ways to launch elections is to urge the public to always be aware of things that have the potential to thwart them, including provocations. In the Colomadu area, Karanganyar, Central Java, banners containing provocations against the election were found.
The banner containing a call to reject the Election and calling for people power was immediately taken down and the findings reported to Bawaslu (Bawaslu). The security forces are still investigating who made and put up these provocative banners.
Colomadu sub-district head, Sriyono, said that the banner did not appear out of nowhere. But it was deliberately installed by unknown people at strategic points that were passed by the community.
With this phenomenon that is appalling and has the potential to influence the community, especially if it makes people really reject the implementation of the General Election. This will greatly impact many parties in Indonesia. Even though the election has been regulated in the law.
If the General Election is not held on time, of course, all will be disturbed and shaken. As a result, there will be a temporary leadership vacuum which is actually very vulnerable to putting this nation at a critical point. This also includes, if for example the current leadership period continues without any circulation of leadership changes. It’s the same thing, it will create tremendous potential for conflict.
How can a sacred program like general elections be rejected? It’s really strange when the campaign period hasn’t started but there are parties who carry out a movement against the Election, and their mode of action is very suspicious.
Society must be wary of provocations to reject elections because they have many negative impacts. First, from a financial point of view, the rejection and postponement of the election schedule will make the funds that have been spent go to waste. When the election is canceled, hundreds of millions of ballot papers will be wasted because this program is not held. When this bad thing happens, who will bear the loss?
Second, the provocation of election refusal will throw the schedule into disarray. The government and KPU have made an election schedule starting from the campaign period, the election period, the quiet period, to the announcement of the president. However, when there is a boycott and rejection of the election, it is feared that it will damage the schedule, and again have an effect on finances. The reason is because the shift in schedule will make the budget for holding the General Election swell.
Meanwhile, Bangka Belitung youth leader Leno Seftian invites all parties, especially the youth and young generation of Babylon, to participate in selecting prospective leaders who have dedication, competence and high leadership qualities. He also rejected the anti-election provocation that had recently been circulating in Central Java.
In a sense, there are provocations against elections in Central Java. But figures in Bangka Belitung also rejected it, because there could be a similar movement in their area. Do not let there be provocations in other provinces and influence the public to abstain (white group) because it will harm them.
Elections are one of the programs to safeguard democracy, because they enable the people to govern the country through their representatives (legislative members). With elections, people can elect their own president and vice president, and Indonesia will become a truly democratic country.
However, if there is a provocation to reject the election, Indonesian democracy can be shaken. When the election is abolished or postponed, there are no members of the MPR, even though their existence is very important, because they are representatives of the people and at the same time safeguard democracy. Therefore, the public is urged to continue to be aware of provocations to reject the election.
Moreover, the provocation banner also stated a call for people power, aka a movement to remove the president. How can there be people who want to move the people, even though all Indonesian citizens really love President Jokowi? He should not act on behalf of the Indonesian people, because in reality the people do not want him to be replaced until the end of his term of office (2024).
The public is urged to be wary of banners and propaganda to reject the election and to call for people power. Don’t pay attention to the incitement of unscrupulous persons because rejecting the election is tantamount to violating the law. If the elections are canceled or postponed, there will be big losses, especially from a financial perspective. The government, KPU and Bawaslu are trying to organize the elections as well as possible, and the public is obliged to support them.
)* The author is a contributor to the Cross Nusamedia Institute