Understanding the President of Indonesia – Kompas.id

In the chaos of political struggles that are raging, it is very possible for people to be poisoned in their thoughts and behavior politicking. Not a few have failed to ask, let alone understand, what the position of Indonesian president is, which they are fighting for with all their efforts and means. To the point that, those who feel they have failed in the political struggle are willing to wail and revile.

The Indonesian people and politicians also seem to fail to understand that in developed countries like the United States, citizens who are already intelligent and well-established in politics and democracy no longer really care about the presidential election.

This is evident from the level of political participation of citizens in the presidential election which is quite low, difficult to exceed 60 percent of the number of voters.

In the chaos of political struggles that are raging, it is very possible for people to be poisoned in their thoughts and behavior politicking.

US citizens have understood that the president is not everything. They also understand that the presidency is only a temporary position, which will not change the landscape of life totally and instantly. Therefore, it is commonplace that former US presidents live as ordinary people after taking office, as did Barack Obama, George Bush, or Ronald Reagan.

The ability to understand the position of president thoroughly and comprehensively should become elementary knowledge for the Indonesian people. In this way, the people will not be swept up in the hustle and bustle of cunning and cunning political struggles, which in fact do not have much benefit in changing their lives, if not to say it is just a deceptive illusion.

In essence, life still has to be fought for personally, and in many cases not through politics.

Presidential powers

The scope of the Indonesian president’s powers, according to the 1945 Constitution as the state constitution, is to hold government power in order to implement the 1945 Constitution and laws. This is commonly referred to as holding executive power.

Within the scope of executive power, the president also has the power to appoint and dismiss ministers, ambassadors, consuls, or receive assignments of ambassadors from friendly countries.

The president also holds quasi-legislative powers in the process of forming laws, issuing government regulations in lieu of laws, government regulations and presidential regulations. The president also holds quasi-judicial power to grant pardon, rehabilitation, amnesty and abolition.

“Checks and balances” mechanism

Even though it seems that the scope of his powers is quite broad, in fact the Indonesian president is not free to carry out governmental actions as he pleases, because the president is both limited and controlled by political or legal responsibilities. The 1945 Constitution regulates that the Indonesian president is not in a condition “The president can do no wrong”.

However, unfortunately, until now Indonesia is still reluctant to form a law on the position of president that regulates the presidential institution comprehensively so that the president is more transparent, accountable and responsible in exercising his powers.

In exercising his powers, the Indonesian president is monitored, even limited, by a check and balance mechanism between legislative power held by the DPR and judicial power exercised by the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court.

In fact, the president is also monitored by the press as the fourth pillar of political power, both mainstream media and social media. In practice, social media not only monitors and criticizes, but is even more sadistic, to the point of insulting and cursing the president.

Implications of monitoring by mechanisms checks and balances or supervision by the press means that post-reform Indonesian presidents are no longer free to execute their powers based on personal or group perceptions (inner circle). On the other hand, the Indonesian president tends to be trapped in a chain of regulations that are sometimes too detailed and long-winded.

It is in this context that President Joko Widodo (Jokowi)’s desire to simplify regulations and breakthrough procedures emerged. Unfortunately, President Jokowi’s careful idea was hijacked by his assistants with a framework omnibus law which is constitutionally wrong.

Unfortunately, President Jokowi’s careful idea was hijacked by his assistants with a framework omnibus law which is constitutionally wrong.

As a result of complicated and long-winded regulations, to implement strategic projects such as the construction of toll roads and ports, President Jokowi needed to issue a separate presidential regulation as an effort to shortcut the complexity of legal regulations and bureaucratic procedures.

Apart from that, personally, the President of Indonesia no longer truly embraces glory (dignity) because every day the president can receive insults and insults from the people.

Mirage

The intelligent people should begin to realize that the way they view the position of president as a position full of power, so that they can do whatever they want to change the quality of personal or people’s lives instantly and automatically, is just a mirage.

The position of president is only a state organ mandated to improve general welfare gradually and systemically. In fact, it is a violation of the constitution if the Indonesian president abuses his power with the aim of providing welfare and special benefits to individuals or groups.

It is time for the people to treat the presidential election process as a reasonable constitutional mechanism without the need to create victims, damage or heartache.

Bahrul Ilmi Yakup Chairman of the Association of Constitutional Advocates-Lecturers