GENNUS.ID – The history of Indonesian democracy is currently at a critical crossroads. In broad daylight, a grand scenario is being woven to forcibly pull the people’s sovereign rights back into the dark rooms of power. The discourse on returning the election of Governors, Regents, and Mayors to the Regional Houses of Representatives (DPRD) is not merely a technical-administrative change; it is a “hijacking” of the very essence of the Reformation.
We must dare to map this political landscape transparently. Currently, only a few political forces—including the PDI Perjuangan and the Nusantara Awakening Party (PKN)—officially stand their ground against the “Pilkada via DPRD” (indirect regional elections). Meanwhile, other major powers seem to be lining up behind the narrative of “efficiency” championed by Golkar and welcomed warmly by Gerindra, PAN, and PKB. The others? They have chosen to be opportunists, adopting a “wait and see” attitude, watching which way the winds of power blow.
The Misleading Alibi of Efficiency
The narrative being sold to the public is consistently about “cost and waste.” They claim that for the sake of budget efficiency, the people must sacrifice their right to vote. This is dangerous nonsense. The efficiency alibi is merely a mask to cover the desire for “power-sharing” in backrooms, undisturbed by the public. The political elite appears increasingly restless because the people are becoming more critical and harder to manipulate in direct elections.
Direct regional elections (Pilkada Langsung) are the only tool where ordinary citizens hold power equal to that of high-ranking officials within the voting booth. When this right is stripped away, our democracy returns to ground zero.
Mandates in the Hands of “Corruption Champions”
The most terrifying point is the logic behind handing over the electoral mandate to the DPRD. Let’s look at the data. According to 2024 KPK (Corruption Eradication Commission) data, members of the National and Regional Houses of Representatives (DPR and DPRD) rank as the third most corrupt profession in this country.
Logically, how can we expect clean, pro-people leaders to be born if the “womb” that conceives them is a den of corruption? Handing regional elections back to the DPRD is equivalent to handing the keys of the regional treasury to a thief. This is not fixing the system; it is democratic suicide.
Patching the Bucket, Not Discarding It
We admit that direct elections are not perfect. Money politics and high costs remain a haunting reality. However, if a bucket is leaking, the solution is to patch the holes, tighten supervision, and minimize money politics through strict regulation. It is not to smash the bucket and force us to drink from the murky waters of the past.
The ’98 Activist groups and students must begin to mobilize. This is a fatal step backward. We are being forcibly dragged back to an era where a handful of elites determine the fate of millions.
The Pilkada is the People’s Party, not the Party of the People’s Representatives. Do not let a few elites in the legislative buildings celebrate victory over the death of our voting rights. If we remain silent today, be prepared to say: Goodbye democracy, welcome back to the New Order. (Red)
