Jakarta – In 2024 the Indonesian people will hold general elections (Pemilu) and people have long been encouraged to cast their votes. Don’t abstain from voting (white group) because it will harm themselves. When the election should be used to choose the best leader who will become President of Indonesia. When many abstain from voting, it is dangerous because empty ballot papers can be misused by unscrupulous persons, and make the election dishonest and fair.
The election will be held in February 2024. Even though it has not yet entered the campaign period, the once every 5 years program has heard its echoes. The 2024 election is very thrilling and the people are certainly looking forward to who will become the next President of Indonesia. They want the new leader to make this country better and more advanced.
The public is urged to succeed in the 2024 Election by giving their right to vote (voting on election day). The Coordinating Minister for Politics, Law and Security (Menkopolhukam) Mahfud MD stated that people must exercise their right to vote in the upcoming 2024 elections. Rather than abstaining from abstaining, it is better for the people to elect a candidate for the leader who is the least bit bad.
Mahfud continued, the public should not be apathetic and say that the legislative and presidential candidates are the same. But they must choose the best character, the one with the fewest flaws. In a sense, the community is obliged to succeed in the 2024 Election by exercising their right to vote and not abstaining from voting. Don’t be apathetic and then abstain because it will harm yourself.
The public is obliged to conduct research on presidential and legislative candidates before voting for them. In this way it will be seen which candidate is the best leader. In this way, they will cancel abstentions, because they understand that those who are elected are quality candidate leaders.
The community is expected to take an active part in elections and increase political literacy. Don’t be pessimistic and then say that whoever the president is, the results are the same, because different leaders must have different results. They must be active in elections and use their right to vote, because it will determine the direction of Indonesia in the future.
Abstentions are not a solution to improve the fate of the nation. The reason is because if many people do not exercise their right to vote, then the future of Indonesia is at stake. There will be many empty ballots because the majority of people decide to abstain from voting because they are skeptical about the condition of the country, are jealous of the government, are angry with officials, etc.
If there are many empty ballots, it will be detrimental because there is the potential for misuse by unscrupulous persons. The ballot could have been pierced with a nail or crossed out with a ballpoint pen, then fraud occurred. Thus, the party that is elected is not 100% of the people’s choice, but is the act of fraud by certain individuals.
If the ballot papers are misused then Indonesia’s future is at stake because the party that won the election should not get its position. As a result, the new members of the DPR RI are also not as expected, so that the fate of the nation becomes a big question.
Then, when there is misuse of ballots due to abstentions, there could be mistakes in the presidential election. If the president should be candidate A, then the one elected is candidate B. Indonesia’s future can change, not stagnate, but it may not be any better than before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Therefore, people are strictly prohibited from abstaining for any reason. Abstentions are not cool at all because they are detrimental to Indonesia’s future. Then, if many abstain, the government will also lose because the election budget of 76 trillion rupiah will be wasted, because the results are not as expected.
Vice President KH Ma’ruf Amin stated that experience teaches, the moment of holding elections is a time when national unity is tested. Society has the potential to be polarized due to the heat of political tension. Therefore, it is necessary to unify the steps so that the upcoming 2024 elections will be held. The Vice President also appealed to the public to vote in the 2024 general election.
The public is obliged to vote on election day and it is strictly forbidden to abstain from voting. During the New Order era, the golput movement was popular because it was known for sure which party and leader was elected, but now it shouldn’t be repeated. The government ensures that elections are always honest and fair. Therefore, all Indonesian citizens aged 17 and over must exercise their right to vote.
The negative stigma of elections can be fought by increasing political literacy skills. The way to increase political literacy is to recognize who the presidential candidates are in the upcoming 2024 election and see their vision and mission.
People are strictly prohibited from abstaining because it will be detrimental to themselves and empty ballot papers can be misused by unscrupulous persons. Abstentions is not a good solution because it will risk Indonesia’s future in a bad direction. All Indonesian citizens aged 17 years and over are required to vote during elections and be orderly in upholding election principles.
