Jakarta Globe, Deti Mega Purnamasari & Markus Junianto Sihaloho, Apr 27, 2014
Jakarta. Over a month after officially entering the presidential race, Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo, nominated as presidential candidate by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P, has begun introducing his vision and mission to the voters.
A Balinese farmer threshes rice in Denpasar. (EPA Photo/Made Nahi) |
Jakarta. Over a month after officially entering the presidential race, Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo, nominated as presidential candidate by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P, has begun introducing his vision and mission to the voters.
Visiting
local farmers at the Tanjungrasa village in Bogor district’s Cariu subdistrict,
Joko on Sunday addressed six points in the field of agriculture and food
security that would be his focus should he be elected president in the election
set to take place on July 9.
Productive
agricultural lands, Joko said, should not be converted into other use, such as
residential or industrial areas, and should instead be preserved. Additionally,
he said farmers would have to be assisted in making sure that even the smallest
plots of lands were used productively and that farmers were educated not to use
chemically engineered seeds or pesticides.
Joko also
emphasized the need to build better infrastructure for farmers, the need to
monitor the quality of water in the fields, as well as improved monetary
benefits for farmers and better access to capital and financial support.
“I asked
farmers, how many tons [of rice] can be produced from one hectare [of land]?
Apparently it was six tons, because farmers here are using a good mix,” Joko
said during his visit on Sunday.
According
to him, the average amount of rice produced on Indonesian farms was between
four to five tons for each hectare of land, while the population grew by three
million each year.
“Like it or
not, we need to prepare more food for this growth. Additionally, in the past
five years there has been a significant increase in food imports,” he said,
citing hikes in the imports of several staple food items such as rice, corn,
soy, flour, sugar, salt, beef, onions and fruits.
“We import
fish. We are a maritime nation but our fish imports have spiked,” Joko said
“These are issues that need to be sorted out. These things are the reason why
inflation on certain basic commodities easily occurs for a long period of time
and repeatedly.”
Joko was
adamant that the issue would see major risks unfurl in the next five to 10
years should the government fail to take strict and extreme policies. “Without
that, we are risking our sovereignty and food security,” he said.
As such,
Joko said it was important to ensure the production sector was improved so as
to limit imports.
“We have to
concentrate the production. Imports have to be cut and eventually eliminated.
With some effort and hard work, I think we can achieve this within four or five
years,” he said.
A change of
mentality
Aside from
his vision for the Indonesian agricultural sector, Joko on Sunday also
introduced what he called a “mental revolution,” which he cited as one of the
main requirements needed to see positive changes in Indonesia in the future.
“A mental
revolution, because we have to change ourselves, so that this nation can reach
its potential, because we are a big nation. Let’s change our mentality from the
negative to the positive,” Joko said on Sunday, emphasizing that the issue
would be one of his biggest focuses if elected president and would cover areas
such as education, health and agriculture.
“We cannot
be stuck in negative thoughts and instead should be positive, we have to be
sure that we can do this well and in the right way,” Joko said.
A member of
Joko’s national secretariat team, Eva Kusuma Sundari, said that with the
program, Joko would become an icon of transformative leadership bringing new
values to be practiced by government.
“[Joko is]
a leader who seeks to promote a mental revolution for the sake of transforming
Indonesia into becoming a sovereign, independent nation, the embodiment of a
21st-century Trisakti [ideology],” Eva said in Jakarta on Sunday, referring leadership
principles espoused by Sukarno.
A mental
revolution, she said, was part of an effort to build a fair and prosperous
society that adheres to the Pancasila state ideology. “A nation that never
leaves behind nation and character building projects,” Eva explained.
She
emphasized that Joko had started this mission in Jakarta, with people becoming
more aware of their responsibility not to litter in the areas surrounding the
Angke river in West Jakarta following the city administration’s revitalization
program.
“The
Indonesian culture of working together has to be developed and strengthened for
it to become the base of our [development],” Eva said, adding that education
played a pivotal role in ensuring the strengthening of this culture among
Indonesians. “Of course people and human resources are the engine of any public
transformation projects and, as such, the spirit of education has to be made
the center of character-building efforts.”
PDI-P
central executive board chairman Maruar Sirait said Joko was ready to build up
the country by focusing on three indicators: Indonesia’s political sovereignty,
economic independence and a positive image in the cultural sector.
“It is
important for us to move towards a mental revolution, as explained by Joko,
because our nation is yet to unite mentally, but it will. We have to be
confident with our capabilities,” he said.
Despite
having a vast supply of natural resources, such as marine, mineral and energy
resources, Indonesia remains hampered by bigger issues such as uneven economic
growth, poor law enforcement as well as other leadership and mental issues, he
said.
“That is
why the mental revolution explained by Joko is very relevant,” Maruar said, adding
that the program would inspire optimism throughout the nation’s stakeholders.
Furthermore,
Maruar also explained that Indonesia’s diversity has yet to be well understood
by the public and that the concept of pluralism remained in tatters as a result
of years of colonialism and imperialism by the Dutch, who at the time used
divisive rule to prevent the people from uniting against them.
“The mental
revolution will have to nurture a mentality of unity, Indonesians have to come
together in building a better Indonesia,” he said.
“[It’s
called] a mental revolution because we have to change ourselves, so that this
nation would have hope. Because we are a great nation.”
Search for
a running mate
Maruar also
said on Sunday that the mental revolution concept also proved PDI-P chairwoman
Megawati Soekarnoputri had made the right decision by appointing Joko as the
party’s candidate and that she would also elect the right running mate for
Joko.
“We are
sure Mega will elect the right vice presidential candidate for Joko, one who
will not merely be a spare tire,” Maruar said. “Let the decision be based on
dialectics and public discussions. They [the public] have proved receptive
towards the PDI-P’s presidential candidate, and now we hope they will react in
the same way towards the PDI-P’s [appointment of a] vice presidential
candidate.”
He added
the party wanted to make sure any vice president would work with the president
in following through party policies and was not burdened with past misdeeds.
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