JAKARTA - A sense of surprise arose when he saw the actions of thousands of village heads who dared to storm the DPR RI building, Jakarta on January 17 asking for an extension of their term of office. They reasoned that 6 years was a short time to carry out development programs, not to mention the political conflicts that often occur when they were about to enter the election period.
So the ideal step, according to village heads, is to extend the term of office to 9 years.
They seem to have a large capital that can force the DPR to grant the request. Seen in the words of a number of protesters circulating on social media, I have been waiting for nine years for you. If we look at it in 2024, cheer up. The political party that doesn't support us is in the village."
That, said a socio-political analyst from the Jakarta State University, Ubedilah Badrun, clearly indicates that what the village head is doing is only a political interest in maintaining power. Not to run a development program for the welfare of the village.
"They came to Jakarta as if they were collecting political promises to the power elites at the center, both executive and legislative. If we look at the sequence, it looks like there is a correlation, starting with the idea of 3 periods, delaying elections, then suddenly the village head asks for an extension," Ubedilah told VOI, Friday (27/1).
"This means that it is suspected that the village head is indeed used by the elite for the political interests of the 2024 contestation. It is quite clear to read," he continued.
The reasons made by the village heads are irrelevant. The president alone who manages the state can do a lot in just five years.
"Meanwhile, the village head, the number of people is far less, the area is much smaller, the period of six years is not enough. This is more than enough to lead and manage the village if the village head has a good relationship," he said.
In fact, what will happen in the future, corruption practices will be increasingly rampant. Currently, the KPK said there were 686 village heads who were caught in corruption over the last nine years. Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) also revealed the same thing. There were 592 corruption cases during the 2015-2021 period.
In fact, ICW stated that corruption at the village level consistently occupies the first position as the sector that law enforcement officers have dealt with the most during that period.
In fact, there are only six years of corruption, do you want nine years? In essence, there is no strong reason to extend the term of office of the village head. Even if you use the reasons for efficiency and budget diversion even though. So, it is clear that there is elite work that uses village head instruments for their political purposes," said Ubedilah.
Moreover, when referring to the provisions of the law, the term of office of the village head is arguably exclusive. Post-formation has changed several times.
Initially, Law Number 22 of 1999 concerning Regional Government stipulated a term of office for village heads similar to that of the president or other regional heads, a maximum of ten years or twice the term of office.
Then, since the issuance of Law Number 32 of 2004 concerning Regional Government, the term of office of regional heads has been extended. In accordance with Article 204, the term of office of the village head is six years and can be re-elected only for the next one term of office.
In the latest regulation, Article 39 of Law Number 6 of 2014 concerning Villages, the term of office of the village head remains the same, namely for six years, but can serve three consecutive terms of office.
"This means that if you are elected continuously, you can be in power for 18 years. This is dangerous, undermining democracy," said Ubedilah.
Also, it damages leadership regeneration at the village level. There is no opportunity for young people to appear to be leaders. In fact, said Ubedilah, it could be that the millennial youth or Z has better abilities and has a more contextual vision and mission with their times.
ICW, in a press release on January 26, also considered that it was not in line with the spirit of reform in 1998 and the amendment to the 1945 Constitution which emphasized the limitation to power in the executive branch.
The extension of the term of office of the village head will make the democratic climate and village government unhealthy and can even fertilize the oligarchy in the village. Not to mention the phenomenon of dynasticity that also emerged in village head elections.
"As a result, the potential of a village led by the same group for decades is getting wider," wrote ICW.
Lord Acton, professor of modern history at the University of Cambridge, England, who lived in the 19th century, stated that power tends to be corrupt and absolute power tends to be absolute corrupt. This statement is still relevant. Many countries, especially those that adhere to the presidential system, have proven it, including Indonesia.
The length of the reign of the Old Order for 22 years and the New Order for 32 years is a valuable lesson of how vulnerable it is to abuse power and authority when the term of office of the leader is too long or not limited.
Actually, there are many other problems that need to be overcome rather than fussing over the extension of the term of office. According to ICW, one of the basic problems in the village today is the lack of community involvement in decision making related to development.
In addition, the transparency and accountability of financial management and development by the village government is allegedly due to corrupt practices there.
Not to mention, Ubedilah added, the issue of the business politics which is currently the trend of village head elections. This is dangerous.
Currently, a minimum of IDR 2.5 billion is for the campaign costs of the village head. In fact, some are up to IDR 10 billion. Meanwhile, their salary is only around IDR 2.5 million. Luckily, if you have a large twisted land, otherwise, it is difficult to return the capital," he said.
In fact, in the past, there was no political money. My age was small, the village head candidates came to the house, the campaign, so they didn't give anything. Maybe because of the big influence of the presidential election contestation, legislature, pilkada, whose candidates share money. The village head finally imitated and continued to be a trend," Ubedilah continued.
More efficient, according to him, the election of village heads through the deliberation of hamlet representatives or RT/RW, is far more efficient, there is no need for a campaign to waste a lot of money.
Ubedilah hopes that the discourse on extending the term of office of the village head will no longer be discussed further, the president must refuse. The DPR also should not revise Article 39 of Law Number 6 of 2014.
In response, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) made only a brief statement, "The law is very clear, limits six years and for three terms."
"Yes, what is called a wish, the aspiration is please convey it to the DPR. The process will be in the DPR later," said the President after reviewing the Ciliwung River drain project, Jakarta on January 24.
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