Good Job, Indonesians!

I am actually very glad with the outcome of the recent Indonesian Presidential Election, in addition to the fact that it was carried out without any meaningful disruption. After about 11 years of reformasi, Indonesians finally understand that democracy doesn’t have to go hand-in-hand with violence. Of course, I also have to pay tribute to the magnanimity of the losing candidates for accepting the result of the election, without which I am sure the situation in Indonesia will not be any much different from that in Iran.

Indonesians’ choice for the Presidency for the period 2009-2014 clearly tells the world that they are capable of making rational decisions despite the significant role played by money politics in this election. In this post, I am not going to talk about the excellent job that SBY had done for the past 5 years because I don’t see the need to do so. Indonesia’s stability during his term should be more than enough to tell you about his capability. If you read any news on Indonesia now, except for the recent bombing in Jakarta, you will not encounter anything significantly negative about the country. This is in contrast to the period before 2004 whereby Indonesia always appeared in the news for all the wrong reasons: political turmoil, separatist movements, terrorism, etc.

Rather I am going to share my views on why Indonesians made the right decision by not voting for another Presidential candidate: Megawati. I am not going to talk about Kalla because Megawati is deemed as the closest contender. Before I move on, I would like to mention that I have no intention to influence any eligible voters to switch their allegiance to any particular candidate. I am merely looking at the election objectively. That’s why I have decided to talk about this only after the election result has been finalized and deemed legal by all the relevant parties.

Indonesians have given Megawati a chance at the Presidency in the past but her performance then had been rather poor. She made a number of blunders, up to a point that Indonesians couldn’t understand what she was trying to achieve. That lost in confidence on her leadership can be felt up till now. If you ask anyone walking down the street what she had achieved during her term, I am sure no one can give you a firm and concise answer.

Her current choice for the Vice-Presidency, Prabowo, is also a wrong move because he is full of controversy, particularly during his term as Commander of the Special Forces during New Order era. As a matter of fact, he is barred from entering US until now.

But I guess the last nail in the coffin for Megawati is when she and Prabowo were reported having intense discussion, to the point of bickering, on who should be the President a few days before nomination. Apparently, both coveted the Presidential position so much and none were willing to give in. No doubt Megawati managed to get herself nominated for the Presidential position in the end but the damage had already been done. Indonesians are sure that if Megawati is elected, the country will face the next 5 years with yet another political turmoil driven by none other than the President and Vice President, two people who should be working closely together for the betterment of the country.