Do we still want Ahok?

JAKARTA. Should Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama remain Jakarta governor or should Jakartans elect a new leader? It is a question that Jakarta citizens need to answer by casting their votes in the direct gubernatorial election next year - the second round of simultaneous regional elections in the country.

It is still over a year away but incumbent Governor Ahok has been gathering support from Jakartans. His volunteers - grouped under Teman Ahok (Friends of Ahok) - are calling on supporters to fill in support forms again in an effort to minimize possible loopholes that may risk his independent candidacy.

As the incumbent, Ahok has the upper hand in the election. However, because he has yet to secure endorsement from a party or coalition of parties to make him eligible to contest, Ahok will rely heavily on public support. He has named Heru Budi Hartono, a civil servant at the Jakarta administration office, as his running mate.

Teman Ahok previously collected 784,977 identity card copies prior to Ahok’s appointment of Heru as his running mate. But to avoid any legal challenges, they have decided to redo the registration.

Another gubernatorial hopeful, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, a state administrative law expert who previously served as law and human rights minister during Megawati Soekarnoputri’s administration and as state secretary under Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, said the ID cards and forms collected for Ahok were not valid because they did not include a deputy gubernatorial candidate.

A 2015 General Elections Commission (KPU) regulation on regional leader candidacy stipulates in all articles concerning independents that the candidates are a “pair”.

Around 7 million citizens of Jakarta will be eligible to vote in next year’s election.  Independent gubernatorial candidates must collect ID card copies from about 6,5% of the city’s population. ID cards and forms must be submitted to the Jakarta General Elections Commission by Aug. 16 at the latest.

Ahok, who became governor in November 2014 to replace Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who was elected President, is optimistic about meeting the target because he has brought about “real changes to Jakarta that residents can see”.

His challenges are not limited to collecting ID from 1 million supporters. His double minority status - as a Christian and a person of Chinese descent - remains a stumbling block. His haters on social media and conservative Muslim preachers have intensified a campaign against him.  

A survey conducted by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in January, however, found that religion would not play a significant role in the upcoming Jakarta election, as also happened in the 2012 election.