Wong Cilik's Popular Narrative, Between Slogan And Hope

Illustration Of Photos Of Andri Winarko VOI

JAKARTA We are used to listening to the complaints of the people. That is one of the remarks from the closing sentence of Ganjar Pranowo during the 2024 presidential candidate (candidate) debate which was held at the General Election Commission (KPU) Building last December 12.

Of course, it is not surprising that the presidential candidate number 3 uttered this sentence. This is because Ganjar and one of the supporting political parties, PDI Perjuangan, continue to echo themselves as representatives of the little people.

The use of populism narratives in imaging efforts is commonplace and is often used in political communication. Popularism is considered an easy strategy for politicians to influence voters' thoughts and perceptions. Including Ganjar Pranowo consistently uses the narrative of the populism of the little people to build an image as a leader of the little people since participating in the 2013 Central Java regional head election.

Saat menjabat sebagai Gubernur Jawa Tengah selama dua periode dan kini menjadi capres, Ganjar pun terus berupaya secara konsisten menampilkan cilik sebagai representasi wong cilik. Saja lihat di akun media sosialnya, dimana dia kerap membagikan foto-foto kedekatannya dengan rakyat Jateng. Pun saat kampanye, mana Ganjar kerap menginap di salah satu rumah masyarakat setempat.

Senior PDI-P politician from Central Java, Hendrawan Supratikno did not hesitate to praise Ganjar as a representation of the little people after Joko Widodo. According to him, as a PDIP cadre, Ganjar really understands Bung Karno's teachings, who once said that the marhaen people are those who do not have capital accumulation or capital in running their business. In the current era, PDIP calls it a child, people whose fate must be fought for through an explicit political, policy, or program approach.

'Ganjar is a simple person born from the womb of the people. Together with Mahfud, they certainly better understand what is the priority need of the community at the grassroots. The politics brought by Ganjar-Mahfud is very clear from the political conception they bring and from the experience they see directly in the field, not as an electoral approach alone," he said, Saturday, December 16.

Hendrawan emphasized that the leaders in the Javanese philosophy have the property to always be nurturing, ngayemi, and nganyani. Ethinology, ngayaomi means giving a sense of security, ngayemi is to make a sense of comfort, and ngayani means strengthening.

These three traits have been reflected in Ganjar-Mahfud's track record while in the world of government. Both are people who care about the little people, always prioritize the public interest, and obey the constitution and law," he added.

Ganjar Pranowo's little populism narrative in the 2024 presidential election was also strengthened by one of the leading programs initiated by the PDI-P. While carrying out a political safari in Banten, last Sunday, December 10, the Secretary General of the PDI-P DPP, Hasto Kristiyanto, revealed that the Ganjar-Mahfud candidate pair would continue the people's work of the Joko Widodo government through the Indonesian Integrated Card One ID card (Sakti) program.

Hasto stated that the Sakti KTP is one of the solutions to solve people's problems, especially those related to easy access to basic needs. This is because the Sakti KTP is a program that perfects the policies of the Jokowi era in order to realize the welfare of the people.

"What Ganjar is doing in continuing, improving, accelerating the achievements of President Jokowi for the people, the answer is the Sakti KTP," he said.

"So, convey to the people, in an effort to accelerate Indonesia's fast movement to excel, in perfecting what Pak Jokowi did, who was also the previous leadership, came from our party education, with this Sakti ID card. With the Sakti ID card, we will integrate, we unite our commitment to the little people. Because the poor and neglected children are cared for by the state. This is a healthy card, a smart Indonesian card, there is a PKH, there is a one undergraduate family program, there is a raskin, everything will be followed up with a smart Indonesia Raya resident sign card. So this is called the Sakti ID card," continued Hasto.

He emphasized that in the future the people do not need to have many cards to get help. Because, the Sakti KTP can be realized by data unification. So, for the poor, there is no need for a lot of cards, just show the Sakti KTP. How? How to do this first with one data. So we are proud as Indonesian citizens because this ID card reflects the most fundamental commitment to government for the people. So this magic card is based on a single ID. This will be the NPWP, this will be one data for every Indonesian citizen, including related to social security, it is all integrated in a magic card, "explained Hasto.

Building a populist narrative of wong cilik is legitimate, including that of Ganjar Pranowo. However, is the jargon indeed in accordance with the needs of the people in choosing a leader in 2024? Unpad Communications Science Lecturer, Kunto Adi Wibowo hopes that the narrative of wong cilik populism by 2024 will not only be a material for selling parties or certain candidate pairs.

Because so far, behind the image as a representation of wong cilik, of course there is a mission to get as many votes as possible from voters to gain profit and power. This is branding. How can efforts get closer to their constituents, because like it or not, in the pyramid of the Indonesian population, the largest is in the lower layer or the little one," he said.

According to him, the public can actually judge whether this little wong's frill is in line with the protests of political parties and candidate pairs that are supported, or just a mere label. Kunto argues, so far the image of a little wong may only be a mere slogan and many people don't believe it.

On the other hand, he said, it could be that the image of the representation of the wong cilik is translated through actions that are actually not justified in democracy. For example, taking advantage of a disaster situation or crisis by providing assistance to small communities, but accompanied by campaigns. In the process, it is possible for money politics to occur, vote buying, to the distribution of money or political under the guise of goods (pork barrels) from politicians to civil society.

This is very dangerous for democracy. However, for citizens, that is what is referred to as a representation of wong cilik, which can provide aid money in a fast time when the citizens really need it. So, it's no wonder that in the end those who label themselves as representatives of wong cilik will have a more place in the hearts of the people. If the economic situation gets worse, it is very possible that this political money will be very effective in 2024," explained Kunto.

He emphasized that of course the public is waiting for evidence from Ganjar Pranowo with Mahfud MD if they win the 2024 presidential election. Moreover, during their tenure, both Ganjar and Mahfud were known to be populist and often defended the small people. What is waiting is of course proof if elected. Are they still pro wong cilik, or are they co-opted by oligarchy," concluded Kunto.