Page 182 - Demo

Islam, Democracy and Human Rights in Contemporary Indonesia165Open Proportional Elections Are CostlyFrom the experience of four general elections held under theopen proportional system, Indonesia has learned many lessons.According to a Tempo investigation conducted a decadeago, the cost of running for a seat in the national parliament(DPR RI) could reach Rp 6 billion (Tempo, April 22, 2013). TheCorruption Eradication Commission (KPK) also revealed thatthe cost to win a regional election (for regent, mayor, or governor)ranges from Rp 20 billion to Rp 100 billion, with an average ofRp 60 billion (Kompas, July 23, 2020).With such exorbitant political costs, only the wealthy elitecan inevitably dominate legislative and executive positions atboth national and regional levels.On the other hand, the official salaries of Indonesian officials(2019%u20132024) are extremely low. For example, a regent (bupati)earns a base salary and official allowances totaling only Rp 5.88million per month (gajimu.com). To recover the cost of a Rp 60billion political campaign, such an official would need to remainin office for 170%u2013171 years.The dark consequences of this high-cost democracyinclude:First, members of parliament and public officials electedthrough this system%u2014both at the national and regional levels%u2014are unlikely to serve the people selflessly. They are trapped bythe need to repay their political debts. The easiest way to do sois by collaborating with corporations, granting them land,mining, and natural resource (SDA) concessions.