How are Jokowisme, the Chocolat Party and the interim head of the Cawe-Cawe regional elections handling the regional elections in the eyes of the PDI Perjuangan?

The 2024 regional elections (Pilkada) have sparked a wave of strong criticism from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan). This time they accused the democratic process of being tainted by structured, systematic and massive fraudulent practices (TSM). These practices involve three elements, namely: Joko Widodo (Jokowi), the police and the acting regional heads.

“The dark side of democracy is driven by an ambition for power that never stops. It is a combination of three aspects: Jokowi's ambition, the Chocolate Party movement and the PJ regional leaders. is a crime against democracy,” said PDI-P DPP Secretary General Hasto Kristiyanto in a press conference at the PDI Perjuangan DPP Office, Thursday (11/28/2024).

Deddy Sitorus, chairman of the DPP PDI Perjuangan, said the violations committed during the 2024 regional elections and the previous presidential election were a manifestation of the political culture his party called jokowism.

“We call this bad political culture the culture of jokoism because it started when a leader named Jokowi, with all the means and power at his disposal, made efforts to organize elections according to his wishes,” Deddy told the same occasion.

Jokowism, according to Deddy, has created a political system that ignores the principles of honesty and fairness. By using the instruments of the state, the government manages to mobilize power to manipulate the results of elections.

“So how can a Jokoism-style politics, which is the dark side of democracy, work? Of course, this requires instruments. What instruments are used for this Jokoism-style electoral politics? Of course, it is something very large, which has a considerable impact a strong network and has the capacity to raise funds and bring certain groups together,” he explained.

Chocolate festival and regional girlfriends election

“It’s common knowledge that we now know the ‘Chocolate Festival,’” Deddy said.

The term “Chocolate Festival” or parcok, Deddy said, has become a new vocabulary in the Indonesian political world. He explained that the term parcok refers to the police elements involved in the legislative election process. He rejected the “unscrupulous” narrative and believed that police involvement had become a movement structured on the basis of a chain of command.

“At PDI Perjuangan, frankly, we are sad because what this brown party is referring to is of course the police officers. However, since it's not just one place, maybe we shouldn't mention these individuals, but it has become something of a line. command,” Deddy said.

According to Deddy, the use of police elements with the aim of influencing the results of the regional elections was carried out by Jokowi through the National Police Chief, General Listyo Sigit Prabowo. He stressed that Listyo was the person most responsible for using the police as a political instrument for the regional elections.

“I think the key holder is Listyo Sigit. He is responsible for the institutions he controls and directs, which are apparently part of the damage done to our democracy,” he added.

The influence of power intervention was so massive, especially in Central Java, that Deddy declared the province was no longer an enclosure.

“Now all fellow journalists can, from today, consider Central Java no longer as an enclosure, but as a stable of welfare and parcok (chocolate festival),” said Deddy Sitorus in his press release.

Role of the interim regional head

In addition to the police element, Deddy also highlighted the role of interim regional chiefs (PJs) who report to the Ministry of the Interior. He said regional PJ leaders often served as tools for success teams for certain political interests.

“The second in this triangle is called the District Head PJ. The District Head PJ is entirely under the control of the Ministry of Interior. It should be their duty to ensure that no one called District Head PJ does become a tool for team success,” he stressed.

Deddy gave examples of methods used, ranging from the distribution of social assistance to the practice of monetary policy to systematic manipulation at the village level. In North Sumatra, he said there was interference at the level of the village chief, RT and even community leaders to influence election results.

“North Sumatra is very bare, North Sulawesi is very bare in various places, but from what we can observe it seems to be Gakumdu's work, Bawaslu's work,” Deddy said.

However, he also highlighted the weak response of Interior Minister Tito Karnavian and monitoring institutions such as Bawaslu, which, although they received numerous reports of violations, were found to be less firm in following up on these cases.

Where and how does Parcok work?

Hasto revealed that in a number of areas there was a large-scale mobilization of the state apparatus and state resources to support certain parties.

“In Banten, the anomaly is so great because of the mobilization of the state apparatus and state resources. State instruments are used for certain political interests,” he explained .

In North Sumatra, Hasto said, a similar practice also occurs, with a more symbolic mode. Hasto said there was a rice distribution for the poor which had the code “BN”, which is nothing but an abbreviation of “National Rice”. According to Hasto, the acronym also refers to the name Bobby Nasution, as part of a political strategy.

“In North Sumatra, the symbolization of national rice with the code BN is a means of manipulation. This acronym also refers to Bobby Nasution, which shows how the device is used to influence the results of regional elections,” he said.

Hasto also highlighted efforts to destroy the PDI Perjuangan base in Central Java, known as the “bullpen”. However, he added that these efforts have actually triggered growing popular resistance.

“When we tried to remove these bull pens, new bull pens were gradually implemented, even in areas where it was previously impossible for the PDI Perjuangan to win,” Hasto said.

In East Java and North Sulawesi, PDI Perjuangan also recorded a similar manipulation pattern to Banten and North Sumatra. “In North Sulawesi, an anomaly similar to Banten occurred, showing how state instruments were used inappropriately,” said Hasto.

Urge police reform

Faced with this situation, the PDI Perjuangan began to consider significant reform measures, including pushing for the Indonesian National Police to return to the control of the TNI commander or the Ministry of Interior. He stressed that the police's tasks should be limited to maintaining traffic order, public safety and solving criminal cases, without getting involved in practical politics.

“This brings us to the idea that even if not all members of the Republic of Indonesia State Police agree with General Listyo's actions, we should know that we are already studying the possibility of pushing back the State Police of the Republic of Indonesia. under the control of the TNI commander or return to the Ministry of the Interior,” Deddy explained.

Commission III denies Parcok's involvement

The Chairman of Commission III of the DPR, Habiburokhman, rejected the accusations of the PDI Perjuangan regarding the alleged existence of the “Chocolate Party” (Parcok) which would use police institutions to influence the results of the 2024 regional elections. statement, Habiburokhman. said the accusations were baseless and called them hoaxes.

“We call what a handful of people said regarding Parcok and so on hoaxes,” Habiburokhman emphasized in his press release at the Senayan Parliamentary Complex on Friday (11/29).

He added that there was a DPR member who made this accusation and it was reported to the Honorary Council Court (MKD).

“This person was even reported to the MKD. We want to ask him for information, what is the evidence, what is the basis of this accusation,” he said.

Habiburokhman also explained that in the context of the legislative elections, accusations of manipulation of the police institution are difficult to accept logically. He said the coalition dynamics of various political parties in various regions made the accusation unreasonable.

“It's called Pilkada, right? It's not just between two camps. So it's almost impossible for the national police chief to use his institution for the interests of a particular camp. Because in Pilkada there may be a “mixture” between political parties. For example, in province A, party A forms a coalition with party B, but in other provinces they may disagree. , so logically, it's illogical”, he explained.

Habiburokhman reminded that DPR members enjoy freedom of opinion, but must nevertheless base their statements on solid evidence. He requested that unfounded stories should not be used as they could create an unfavorable situation.

“We ask our colleagues in the DPR, although we are free to express our opinions, that they must be based on solid evidence. Do not just use narratives, because this can actually create an unfriendly situation. auspicious,” he stressed.

Habiburokhman confirmed that information against DPR members passing on allegations related to Parcok was being followed up by the MKD. “If this is reported to the MKD, the procedure must of course be convened, questioned and asked to prove it. If you cannot prove it, of course there will be consequences,” he said.

He also stressed that although DPR members enjoy legal immunity, the MKD has a mechanism ensuring that every statement made by DPR members does not carry the nuances of slander or prank.

“DPR members are legally immune, but in MKD we have a mechanism so that every statement does not have a defamatory character. This is precisely where the MKD mechanism can circumvent the immunity of DPR members,” he concluded.