Regardless the outcome

Lawmakers have only a few hours left to pass the legislation on parliamentary elections at the grand plenary session slated for February 26, 2008. The heated debates are not over with the larger political parties forcing their will to accommodate their political interests. Eight draft chapters have yet to be agreed upon. While the clock ticks, at stake is a better election than that of 2004 which was based on Law no. 13, 2003 which gave birth to the current assemblies. Deputy chairman of the drafting committee Andi Yuliani Paris expected a miracle to pass the legislation on time as the stages of the elections, including the 2009 elections, will be delayed. Meanwhile, the government is optimistic that the new legislation will be passed soon. Otherwise the old law will be used and voting will take place. The greatest fear will be the issuance of new government decisions (Perppu) to replace some of the draft bill’s missing requirements. The crucial points are among others parliamentary threshold governing a political party’s right to appoint their stalwarts taking seat, the balloting procedure and whether or not a convict can become a people’s representative. Meanwhile, the stipulation on the use of quick count remains unchanged. The hot issue still being debated is how to guarantee that the survey institutions are really independent. But despite the imperfection and weaknesses in the outcome of the legislation, at least Indonesia is learning and quite advanced in what democracy is all about. The question now is whether the 2009 elections will choose a new leader who is strong, consistent and willing to sign a contract with the people to improve their welfare.