President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) called on the General Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) to conduct electoral supervision duties strictly, including the law enforcement process, Bawaslu Chairperson Rahmat Bagja stated after meeting the president here, Thursday.
“Mr President’s request for Bawaslu is to be strict in terms of law enforcement, both criminal law and administrative law,” Bagja remarked at the Presidential Palace.
The agency’s chairperson noted that during an audience with Bawaslu, President Jokowi praised his experience of being examined by Bawaslu during his candidacy processes, such as while running for the post of mayor of Surakarta, Central Java, and governor of Jakarta.
Bagja remarked that the president also called these experiences as being the best memories since they became a true manifestation of Bawaslu’s firmness in conducting its duties.
“He lauded and assessed that this is what is needed in the future, strict law enforcement, so that general election participants (candidates would) be careful in conducting campaign processes, mass gathering, and so on,” he stated.
Moreover, Jokowi advised Bawaslu to continue to maintain its strict behavior in order to improve the implementation of the 2024 general elections.
He remarked that Bawaslu and the government shared similar views regarding the politicization of ethnic, religious, racial, and intergroup (SARA) issues, hoaxes, and black campaigns.
Politicization of SARA must be stopped to prevent polarization, he added.
Furthermore, he revealed that Bawaslu invited President Jokowi to attend and open the Global Network on Electoral Justice (GNEJ) event in Denpasar, Bali, on October 9, 2022.
Bawaslu currently hosts the GNEJ Presidency for the 2022-2023 period.
The Thursday’s audience with the president was the first time for Bagja and four other members of Bawaslu — Herwyn Jefler Hielsa Malonda, Lolly Suhenty, Puadi, and Totok Hariyono — to visit the Jakarta Presidential Palace, since being inaugurated for the 2022-2027 term by President Jokowi on April 12, 2022.
Source: Antara News