JAKARTA – The arrival of a number of influencers to the Indonesian Capital City (IKN) with President Joko Widodo has been criticized by many parties. Political observers say Jokowi panicked because the first phase of IKN construction had not been fully completed towards the end of his term.
President Jokowi had dinner accompanied by a number of Indonesian influencers, including Raffi Ahmad and his wife, Nagita Slavina on Sunday (28/7/2024). The dinner was held during glamping or glamorous camping at IKN. Not only that, Jokowi also invited the celebrities to take part in a motorbike convoy to try out the Penajam Paser Utara Toll Road.
Jokowi's attitude in inviting influencers caused controversy. A political observer from Al Azhar University Indonesia, Ujang Komarudin, considered that Jokowi invited influencers to IKN only to polish the IKN's image to be positive. In fact, the first phase of IKN construction had not been fully completed towards the end of Jokowi's term.
"It seems that Jokowi is a bit panicked, a bit stressed in his leadership period for the next few months," said Ujang, quoting Tempo.
"Jokowi uses instant methods, influencers to build positive news. Good news for the public. But there is a gap. The IKN is not finished yet," said Ujang again.
Part of Communication
Public policy observer from Trisakti University, Trubus Rahadiansyah, said that Jokowi's attitude in inviting celebrities to the IKN was part of the President's communication to report on the development of the new capital city which was stated to be according to plan.
"Seeing this, it's actually just for opinion. Influencers usually like to brag (in providing information), the worry is that it will actually be counterproductive which could later cause public distrust," Trubus told VOI.
"Actually there is no need to bring in influencers, there is no urgency. There is no impact and it's just a waste of budget," Trubus added.
The IKN program that is glorified by the Jokowi government has experienced a number of problems. Starting from land acquisition, development whose progress is not according to plan, to the biggest one regarding foreign investors who have not arrived.
Quoting the IKN page, Deputy Chief of Presidential Staff (KSP) Juri Ardiantoro said that the IKN development project in East Kalimantan requires a budget of IDR 499 trillion. However, the IKN financing scheme will not entirely depend on the state revenue and expenditure budget (APBN).
"The largest part is actually from government and business entity cooperation (Public-Private Partnership) and private sector contributions or investments," said Juri on June 26, 2021.
"The rough estimate is that of the total funds of IDR 466 trillion needed, (funding from) the APBN is only around IDR 89.4 trillion. Then KPBU and the private sector are IDR 253.4 trillion, while BUMN and BUMD are IDR 123.2 trillion," he continued.
Trubus emphasized that the arrival of influencers to the IKN would have no impact at all on foreign investors who until now have been difficult for the government to attract. According to him, this happened because Indonesia is accustomed to inconsistent policies.
"While the issue of investment funds requires certainty, what is the certainty in Indonesia? There is none. So far, prospective investors are still waiting and seeing. There are many problems there, land problems, community society, and others," said Trubus.
Psychology of Influence
The psychology of influence is the study of how a person’s attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors are affected by the actions, opinions, and messages of others.
According to social influence theory, people are more likely to do something if they perceive it as a social norm, or if they see others doing it. The closer someone is to us, the more likely we are to be influenced by them.
The term influencer is becoming increasingly popular among the public, especially social media users. According to Medium.com, an influencer is someone who has the ability to influence the behavior of others, using their authority, expertise, popularity, or charisma.
Influencers can use the psychology of influence to persuade and motivate their followers, using a variety of technical principles.
The impact of influencers makes them viewed by the government as partners or as a new means to communicate their policies, including those implemented during the pandemic.
Regarding the arrival of celebrities to the IKN with Jokowi, it can be said that the President is utilizing influencers as a "marketing strategy".
Influencer marketing is a form of marketing that involves partnering with influencers, who are social media figures or industry experts, to create and share content that features a brand, product, or service.
Influencer marketing has a significant impact on consumer behavior, as it influences the decision-making process and perceptions, by leveraging the psychology of influence, and by providing information, guidance, and motivation to consumers.
Due to Lack of Self-Confidence?
In fact, this is not the first time Jokowi has invited influencers to his activities. When testing the Jabodebek LRT last year, the former Mayor of Solo also invited several influencers with him.
Partnering with influencers is not only done by Jokowi. President-elect Prabowo Subianto, while still campaigning for the 2024 Presidential Election, also met dozens of well-known influencers, including Deddy Corbuzier and Bintang Emon.
Ganjar Pranowo did not want to be outdone. A number of actors, musicians, and content creators such as Anang and Once Mekel were invited to casual discussions by this PDI Perjuangan politician.
Sociologist Bayu Yulianto said that currently the role of influencers is expected to change awareness, behavior, or change people's beliefs. This makes the position of influencers in society, especially the social media community, increasingly higher than other people.
"This was then seen by politicians that influencers are also considered to be able to resonate, can be an amplifier of what they do or the image they want to build in society," said Bayu Yulianto.
"I think the representation of how our politics or political world is increasingly like a free market. They need an image like a product, they need parties who can be figures of their ideas because maybe they themselves are not too confident that their ideas can be believed or accepted by the public," Bayu added.
Enda Nasution, a social media expert, said that the presence of influencers among politicians will not necessarily be "heard" by the public. He emphasized that influencers will be heard if they are in accordance with their respective fields.
For example, those who are experts in the automotive field, then their advice and recommendations are heard in the automotive field. Or they are experts in the culinary field, then their advice and recommendations about food are heard.
"The same goes for politics. So there is no one influencer who suddenly all of us will believe what he says, except maybe there are people who want to follow," said Enda.
"If he recommends or influences someone about something outside of what he knows, it's not necessarily that people will believe it," Endra emphasized.
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