Call Ganjar-Anies Not Understanding Defense, Geopolitics And International Relations Issues, Fadli Zon Reveals Facts

Debate On The Presidential Candidate For The Second Presidential Election Of The KPU In Jakarta, Sunday 7 January (VOI)

JAKARTA - At the presidential candidate debate on January 7, 2024, strategic issues such as defense, geopolitical, and international relations became the focus of debate. However, according to Fadli Zon, two presidential candidates Ganjar Pranowo and Anies Baswedan seemed more interested in attacking their political opponents than providing constructive ideas. In the view of the Deputy Chairperson of the Board of Trustees and Deputy Chairperson of the Gerindra Party DPP, Fadli Zon's success in debate is often measured by the ability to attracting attention through verbal attacks, however, he noted that the attack could have a wider impact than seen, especially on Indonesian National Defense and Army (TNI) institutions. First, Fadli Zon highlighted the continuous attack on Prabowo regarding the main defense system (defense equipment) which is called "smooth" or "obscured". According to him, attacks of this kind do not understand the complexity of the politics and the defense industry, where defense equipment manufacture does not seperti pembelian barang massal di toko.Ia menjelaskan bahwa produksi alutsista membutuhkan waktu minimal 3 tahun, dan tidak semua negara dapat membeli alutsista dengan mudah.Ucapan-kataan insinuative seperti alutsista-bekas, atau usang, yang terus-perus diulang, dengan maksud mendiscreditkan Prabowo, menurut saya adalah pelecehan dan blunder," kata Fadli Zon dalam keterangan tertulisnya dari Tehran, Iran yang diterima Kamis, 11 Januari." Mereka berpiki hanya dengan common sense, tak understand the real politics and defense industry, continued Fadli Zon. Second, Fadli Zon noted Anies Baswedan's statement regarding the defense equipment budget of Rp700 trillion. He considered this statement ridiculous and could mislead the public, because this figure is actually an accumulation of the Ministry of Defense's budget for five years, not the annual budget. Fadli Zon emphasized that shallow knowledge can harm public perceptions of budget management defense.Third, Fadli Zon highlighted the use of indices such as the Global Peace Index (GPI), the Global Militation Index (GMI), and the Asia Power Index (API) by Ganjar Pranowo. "These indexes are not fully relevant for measuring the performance of the Ministry of Defense. That an inaccurate interpretation can provide an actual negative image," he explained. Fourth, Fadli Zon responded to Anies Baswedan's criticism of ASEAN's involvement in dealing with RRC disturbances in the South China Sea. He emphasized that Anies did not seem to understand the ASEAN organization and gave baseless criticism. He said, to simply make statements and urge Myanmar alone, ASEAN could not, let alone intervene in humanity. ASEAN is inspired by the consensus system and non-interference principles contained in the statutory. "So, Anies' words about ASEAN's involvement are like a middle school child. Looks cool, but doesn't have a basis for understanding the problem "That's strong," explained Fadli Zon.

Finally, Fadli Zon discussed the controversy surrounding the land of Cultivation Rights (HGU) owned by Prabowo. He reminded that the land belongs to the company, not to Prabowo's personal property. According to Fadli Zon, cornering Prabowo with this issue is a bad act, especially if it involves TNI soldiers. Fadli Zon emphasized that the presidential election debate should focus on the substance of strategic issues, not school debate competitions. He supports Prabowo's view that domestic, economic and military forces as a whole will influence Indonesia's defense diplomacy and influence in geopolitical maps.