Jakarta (ANTARA) – People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Bambang Soesatyo has urged political parties to prioritize political manners to maintain national unity and integrity during the 2024 General Elections.
“All election contestants must prioritize manners in politics. Set aside political polarization, which fractures unity by opposing poles,” Soesatyo said, according to a statement received here on Wednesday.
Residents must understand that elections are essential for consolidating national democracy and building political maturity among the people, he added.
The MPR Speaker also emphasized refraining from identity politics that could cause polarization in society.
Political parties must not vie for popular support by promoting polarization based on religion, ethnic groups, and race, which could be harmful to Indonesia’s democracy, he said.
“There is no time for anyone who promotes religious, ethnic groups, and racial polarizations (during electoral campaigns) to gain more voters as it will cause division among the people. Solidarity and national unity and integrity must be our priority,” Soesatyo expounded.
The Speaker expressed the hope that all national stakeholders will uphold manners in politics and political parties will form coalitions in safe and peaceful ways during the 2024 General Elections.
Political parties and the people must also strive to make general elections an enjoyable “fiesta of democracy” that will not divide the nation, he remarked.
Earlier, the General Elections Organizer Honorary Council (DKPP) had urged participants of the 2024 General Elections to compete by offering their visions and ideas of change rather than promoting identity politics among potential voters.
“We need to be mindful of identity politics (risks) during the 2024 General Elections and Regional Elections. There is no single country successfully defeating identity politics to date,” DKPP Commissioner J. Kristiadi said on Tuesday (December 28, 2022).
Identity politics remains a credible threat that should be properly addressed by electoral organizers, he added.
To reduce identity politics, electoral stakeholders, including organizers and candidates, should encourage idea-based competition through debate and other discourses to maintain common dignity, he remarked.
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