PKS Wants Regional Heads to Keep Deputies; Gerindra Unhurried on Election Debate

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PKS) has voiced its support for retaining deputy regional heads in elections, arguing that their presence is beneficial for task delegation and overall governance. Mardani Ali Sera, a member of the PKS faction in the DPR's Commission II, stated that while the idea of elections without deputies might seem appealing, the root of conflicts between heads and deputies often lies in political maturity rather than the position itself.

"It's good, but the root is in political maturity. Having a deputy is good for sharing tasks," Mardani said, emphasizing that serving the public cannot be a burden for just one person. He also stressed that regional heads and their deputies should avoid short-term thinking focused on power struggles.

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Good. But the root is in political maturity. Having a deputy is good for sharing tasks.

Instead of eliminating deputy positions, PKS proposes lowering the election threshold for regional head candidates to between 6.5% and 8.5%. Mardani believes this would prevent "forced marriages" between candidates, allowing single parties or even figures from civil society to nominate candidates who can then cooperate effectively. He contrasted this with the current 20% threshold, which he claims leads to many unideal pairings.

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There have been no discussions yet. We are still focused on the Election Bill first.

Conversely, the Gerindra party, represented by Deputy Chairman of Commission II Bahtra Banong, indicated that they are not in a hurry to deliberate on the proposal. Bahtra confirmed that discussions regarding the regional election bill have not yet commenced, as the party's current focus is on preparing for the election bill itself.

This debate follows a recent discussion in DPR Commission II with the Ministry of Home Affairs. PKB faction member Muhammad Khozin had previously raised concerns that deputy regional heads often function solely as vote-getters without significant governmental duties, leading to tensions. He suggested that regional heads could simply appoint their deputies, rather than having them elected.

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Let's just elect regional heads without deputies. Deputy regional heads can simply be appointed by the regional head. This is so they don't just become vote-getters, poor deputy regional heads right now.