President Jokowi Attends KPU National Consolidation Meeting

President Jokowi delivers remarks at the national consolidation meeting for the 2024 elections in Jakarta, Friday (12/02). Photo by: PR of Cabinet Secretariat/Jay.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Friday (12/02), in Jakarta, attended the national consolidation meeting for the 2024 elections.

“We must make the best use of the remaining time to improve the technical capacity for election preparation, fix existing deficiencies, fix problems that we must solve, overcome existing obstacles, and overcome existing weaknesses. We have to overcome all challenges together. We must also develop innovation to improve the quality of the elections and to ensure that the process and the results receive broad support from the public,” the President said.

The President said that all activities at all stages of the elections should be supported by technical provisions.

“This is important. Each stage must have a clear legal corridor. This is important as the anticipatory measures and to overcome various problems that will arise,” he said.

The President reminded all General Elections Commission (KPU) personnel that technical matters in organizing elections can become political matters. To that end, logistical facilities and infrastructure should be prepared in detail, and the procurement should be carried out in the right amount and at the right time.

“Surely, we need to prepare for this. Don’t let unpreparedness cause chaos on the ground. These little things, if we don’t follow up and solve them in detail, can become problems on the ground. In addition, it is important to maintain efficiency and transparency to maintain the accountability,” the President said.

President Jokowi also encouraged the strengthening of human resources at every stage of the election. The President asked that all implementing stages from the lowest to the highest level should be supported by the knowledge, skills and other capabilities needed, so that all apparatus and officers are able to work properly.

“All KPU ranks must realize the magnitude and importance of their task of guarding our nation’s democratic event. It is a very important moment to show commitment and integrity, and to show our dedication and the best ability for the future of our nation and country,” he said.

The President further said that the upcoming 2024 elections will be held amid uncertain global economic situation so that all stakeholders, including election organizers, must show the same commitment.

“The 2024 elections will be held in a global economic environment full of challenges, difficulties and uncertainty, while we are working hard to continue to recover our economy. Therefore, the KPU should work efficiently, utilize its budget carefully and efficiently, and set priority scales,” the President remarked.

Finally, President Jokowi urged the KPU to strengthen political education for contestants and the public.

“Since the beginning, we have invited election participants to hold peaceful and fair elections, and reject any measures that will harm our democracy: spreading slander, spreading hate speech, money politics and others. We have to support quality campaigns that are healthy for our democracy, optimize the use of information technology, prioritize the politics of arguing over ideas, not the political polarization,” he concluded.

In the meantime, KPU Chairperson Hasyim Asy’ari has reaffirmed commitment that the 2024 Simultaneous Elections would be held on time.

During the national consolidation, the KPU will take several measures in the election stages, including verification of political parties, preparation for updating voter lists, arrangement of electoral district, and establishment of ad hoc election committee bodies at the district level.

For the record, the national consolidation meeting will be held for three days until December 3, 2022. The event was attended by 6,341 participants of KPU personnel from the central and regional levels. (TGH/DND/UN) (RI/MMB)