PKS About The Solo Pilkada: Golput Is The Voters' Attitude, We Are Not Directing

General election illustration (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

JAKARTA - Spokesperson for the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) Ahmad Fathul Bari emphasized that his party does not campaign or direct voters in Surakarta to become white (golput). PKS also did not ask its cadres not to use their voting rights.

PKS in the 2020 national coordination meeting (Rakornas) decided not to support the two prospective pairs of candidates in the Solo Pilkada. But this decision according to Ahmad is not an invitation to voters and cadres to abstain.

"It is necessary to distinguish that abstention is the attitude of a party that does not participate in any candidate. Meanwhile, abstention is the attitude of voters," Ahmad told reporters, Wednesday, September 2.

He said his party would not prevent the public from exercising their right to vote because this was against the existing rules. "We certainly will not campaign or direct for golput even against the cadres themselves," he said.

Even so, Ahmad could not guarantee that his cadres would later choose one of the two candidates competing in the city. "PKS cadres certainly understand and can interpret the meaning of the PKS abstention," he said.

"If by the end of the registration period there are no candidates that we have nominated, PKS will abstain and not direct the cadres to choose existing candidates," he added.

Previously, PKS President Sohibul Iman had stated that his party had abstained from the Solo Pilwalkot. The decision to abstain from the Solo Pilkada was taken because the PKS Solo DPD's efforts to find a challenger candidate Gibran-Teguh Prakosa reached a dead end.

"Until today, from the DPD Solo City they said they were trying to present other candidates. But from all their efforts, they concluded that they wanted to abstain not to carry one of the two (candidates) who would fight later, "said Sohibul in a press conference at the PKS DPP which was broadcast via PKSTV YouTube, Saturday, August 29.

The reason for the decision of DPD PKS Solo to abstain from the 2020 Pilkada was accepted by DPP PKS. According to Sohibul, PKS Solo has communicated with a number of political parties, but cannot hold a coalition.

While in the 2020 simultaneous regional elections, PKS provides support or carries candidates in 230 regions. PKS aims to win 60 percent of the total areas where PKS participates in supporting or supporting candidates. Sohibul said that most political communication in the simultaneous regional elections was carried out with NasDem.

"In political communication in exploring coalitions, as the party leader, I communicate with other political parties. I dare to say, I mostly communicate with NasDem, maybe not DPP communication but there is a coalition below. I mostly communicate with NasDem after Democrats, ”said Sohibul.