Author: Ahmad Harris *
Ahead of the implementation of the 2019 Presidential Election political contestation, various parties began to express support to the pair of candidates who were considered worthy of leadership. The support is often motivated by the common vision and mission of the group with the vision and mission of the candidate pair supported. One group that recently declared support for one of the candidates was Barisan Nasional.
Barisan Nasional is a group of exponents of Indonesian nationalist groups who are united to support the candidate pair Jokowi-KH. Ma’ruf Amin. Barisan Nasional is led by Theo L. Sambuaga along with staff such as Ugik Kurniadi, Agung Laksono, Ahmad Basarah and Awang Faroek Ishak. The members are a combination of GMNI, Marhaenis Youth Movement, Women Democrats and other nationalist communities. The group was present as an answer to Indonesia’s unrest over efforts to try to replace the Pancasila ideology of late, especially with regard to the Presidential Election.
Barisan Nasional believes that the Indonesian nation is currently facing forces from within the country and abroad that are trying to change the Pancasila ideology with the deology of imports that carries differences as a tool to weaken unity and mutual cooperation. In addition, the practice of intolerance in Indonesia is also the focus of the Barisan Nasional group so that it can be resolved properly without causing new conflicts. Based on these desires and goals, Barisan Nasional saw the candidate pair of Jokowi-Ma’ruf Amin as an ideal group that could suppress disruption to the Pancasila ideology.
Meanwhile, in the 2019 Presidential Election, Barisan Nasional kissed other parties in this political contestation which became part of disrupting the ideology of the Pancasila. The game of hate speech and false news characterizes that there are other parties who want to deliberately divide the country. This condition also encouraged the Barisan Nasional to uphold support for Jokowi and Kyai Ma’ruf Amin. However, does the Barisan Nasional declaration have a significant impact on Jokowi, especially with regard to strengthening the nation’s ideology?
Barisan Nasional consists of intellectuals and influential people who have a very high sense of love for the motherland. Members of this line are also very credible and have competence in managing the country according to legal procedures that apply without neglect to Pancasila as the basis of all management of this country. Just mention, Theo L. Sambuaga who was once Minister of Manpower during Soeharto’s leadership. His declaration to support Jokowi can be said to stem from a desire to prevent the election of Prabowo Subianto as a candidate who wants to restore the glory of the new order.
Not to mention, Ahmad Basarah, who currently serves as Deputy Chairperson of the People’s Consultative Assembly of the Republic of Indonesia. He on several occasions always wrote and actively voiced the importance of Pancasila as the basis for managing this country. Not surprisingly, at this time, he was close to supporting Jokowi as a form of prevention against efforts to replace the Pancasila ideology with an import ideology under the guise of religion which was packaged in the political contestation of the 2019 Presidential Election.
The presence of Barisan Nasional and its members who have the competence and expertise in managing the country, strengthens Jokowi’s position in the 2019 Presidential Election. This condition confirms that Jokowi is supported by the community from various circles, both religious, nationalist and millennial. Through this support, it can be confirmed that Jokowi is a leader who can represent the wishes of all elements of society in Indonesia. On top of these two things, the presence of the National Front in Jokowi’s camp shows that the Indonesian people are increasingly closely united against the influence of religious-based import ideologies. It is no exaggeration to judge that the 2019 Presidential Election is not only a battle between two candidate pairs, but also a match between Pancasila ideology and an import ideology under the guise of religion.
- FISIP students at the Dharma Agung University
