WEST JAVA’S NEW LEADERSHIP

A surprising victory of Achmad Heryawan and Dede Yusuf in West Java’s governor-vice governor election on April 13, 2008 is a new phenomenon in Indonesia’s modern political history. My basic argument is that this pair is not only the combination of civilians but they also have no experience at all in governing the province. If the results of the quick counts that some credible institutions, including Kompas Daily, have conducted today are correct, these mean that they have defeated two other pairs – Agum Gumelar – Nu’man A Hakim, and Danny Setiawan – Iwan Sulanjana. These two pairs are the combination of incumbent civilians and retired top military officers. The quick counts’ results show that Achmad and Dede grab around 40.47 percent of votes. Their achievement has indeed exceeded those of two other pairs. More importantly, Achmad-Dede’s victory has reflected the popularity of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and National Mandate Party (PAN) in West Java. This is of course a new hope for PKS and PAN to be able to gain more seats in parliament and even a ticket for nominating their presidential candidates in the 2009 elections. For other political parties, including Golkar and the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDIP), Achmad-Dede’s victory is a warning bell because West Java is one of the most significant pockets of voters in Indonesia’s electoral history due to its big number of population. Congratulation to the winning pair and the political parties that support them! It’s time for them to show us their best in making their election promises into reality. If almost 50 percent of the total voters in West Java have cast their votes for a leadership change for a better West Java, majority of Indonesians who dream of a better Indonesia will do the same in 2009. We are going to punish the current government which fails to meet its election pledges and serve its people. I am not trying to judge the current government though I can neither close my eyes from seeing the fact of miseries in ordinary Indonesians’ lives. More and more of them die of hunger or commit suicide as an escape from hopelessness. This is really sad! Mr President: can you still sleep well while your people are hungry? Don’t let majority of your people keep crying for affordable prices of rice and staple food. I am not talking about the state’s responsibility for providing them with excellent health and educational services as well as affordable housing. I am just asking you about affordable staple food! Or, it’s time to change the status-quo leadership in 2009 as we can see in West Java.