On Friday afternoon and evening, the KPU held mock sessions along with representatives of both camps to ascertain smooth implementation of the fifth round of the presidential debate, KPU Commissioner Viryan Aziz informed journalists.
The commission has handed out 150 additional invites to the two presidential and vice presidential candidate camps, as several others are interested in witnessing this final round of debate, he remarked.
Aziz believes that Jokowi and Subianto will use their final debate as a platform to prioritize discussions on economic issues to echo their vision and mission.
Jokowi and his challenger Subianto's performance on April 13 will perhaps play a decisive role in sealing their fate, as it is the final clash to garner the support of undecided voters. On April17, some 192 million eligible voters in the country and abroad will exercise their rights to vote in Indonesia's general elections.
During the fourth round of debates on April 30, presidential candidate number 02, Subianto, opted for an offensive stance as he squared off against Jokowi, a stark contrast to his "reconciliatory approach," as pointed out by University of Indonesia's (UI's) political analyst Vishnu Juwono, during his two earlier debates with Jokowi.
"Prabowo's decision to steer clear from adopting a reconciliatory approach and taking a offensive stand was possibly since he is in the opposition," he noted.
Highlighting the two presidential candidates' performance in their latest debate, Juwono, a noted lecturer at UI's Administration Science Department, drew attention to the fact that Subianto, being in the opposition, was basically looking to launch a scathing attack on the government's functioning.
Juwono stated that Subianto's change in strategy at taking the government to task over its policies, can also be a way to galvanize his voter base.
Several pollsters have indicated a drop in the Subianto-Uno pair's electability behind that of the Jokowi-Amin pair, he remarked.
The Subianto-Uno pair is confident of this novel strategy boosting their electability as compared to Jokowi.
Translator: Prisca T, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Bambang Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
