Avoid Negative Sentiment, Faisal Basri: All Presidential Candidates Play Safe In Fifth Debate

Senior Economist Indef Faisal Basri (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) senior economist Faisal Basri assessed that all presidential candidates (candidates) played safely in the fifth debate of the 2024 presidential election (pilpres) which was held last night.

Initially, Faisal said that the characteristics of the Indonesian people did not like sarcastic people. Therefore, said Faisal, all presidential candidates in the debate also chose to play safely to avoid negative sentiment.

Faisal considered that yesterday's debate was used by each presidential candidate to increase the number of voters. Therefore, he also said that he never expected substance in the presidential election debate.

The reason, continued Faisal, is that the nation's problems are also too complex so they cannot be discussed within a minute or two like during the 2024 presidential election debate.

"So it's not looking for the truth of the discussion, but adding to the electorate. So this fifth debate is anticlimactic because everyone plays it safe, because everyone is aware that the psychological characteristics of Indonesians do not like the people who are sarcastically rich for me," he said in an Indef discussion, at the Mainhattan Hotel, Jakarta, Monday, February 5.

Don't like the sarcastic ones like Anies Baswedan, sneering like Ganjar Pranowo. Therefore, they keep from being impressed by the cynics in the debate," he continued.

Meanwhile, senior economist Indef Tauhid Ahmad assessed that the last debate for the 2024 presidential election was also minimal debate and rebuttal from each presidential candidate.

In fact, Tauhid said that the public seemed to be 'pranked' by each presidential candidate in the fifth debate of the 2024 presidential election. This is because it does not show the depth of the issue discussed.

In fact, he said, in the previous debate there was a debate. Meanwhile, in this fifth debate, each presidential candidate seemed to complement each other, and filled each other's shortcomings.

So that the language is subject to a national prank. So what usually between candidate pairs greeting each other gives questions that can cause a lot of emotions and so on but it doesn't appear. We'll see if in a panelist session or between the candidate pairs doesn't happen either," he said.