If there is control in terms of the context of 'discourses,' quantity does not hold relevance, as the important aspect is the quality of the discoursesJakarta (ANTARA) - The opposition, despite comprising only Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) and Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) -- will remain effective in the Parliament, Ignasius Jaques Juru, researcher of PolGov Research Center of University of Gadjah Mada, stated.
"If there is control in terms of the context of 'discourses,' quantity does not hold relevance, as the important aspect is the quality of the discourses," he told Antara here on Tuesday.
Juru cited the example of the PDIP party when it remained in the opposition during the Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) administration and was yet able to have critical discourses.
The opposition is important as long as it manages to produce constructive and critical discourses.
Moreover, the opposition is needed to ensure that the checks and balances mechanism is applied in the deliberative democratic process, so it could demand for government policies for meeting the public's aspirations.
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In the meantime, Pangi Syarwi Chaniago, a political analyst of the Voxpo Center for Research and Consulting, believed that the opposition group plays a paramount role in conducting checks and balances deemed crucial for democracy to thrive.
"The system of checks and balances is deemed necessary to materialize a controlled governance, so that the government in power does not go off track and act arbitrarily," he said.
Chaniago emphasized the need to view the checks and balances mechanism as an integral and inseparable unit of the democratic system.
He called for the need for opposition parties to strengthen themselves to intensify their role in conducting the critical system of checks and balances.
Currently, the coalition of political parties supporting the government in the Parliament is quite dominant, reaching notably 60 percent.
Any endeavor to recompose the coalition after the election will indicate the coalition's flagging confidence in its own political power, he remarked.
Earlier, political observer Yusa Djuyandi opined that if Indonesia's opposition political parties were to constitute only the Gerindra and PKS, then the system of checks and balances would not be effective.
"If the opposition constitutes only PKS and Gerindra, it would be certain that the government's policies will easily be passed in the Parliament, as the composition is unable to balance the number of executives supported by majority of the political parties," Djuyandi stated on Tuesday.
Djuyandi noted that the opposition parties should preferably have 45 percent of seats in the Parliament.
If only the Democratic Party (PD) and National Mandate Party (PAN) were to remain with Gerindra and the PKS, as the four parties had supported Prabowo Subianto in the 2019 presidential election, then the checks and balances mechanism would be ideal, he explained.
However, based on a recent political communication, PD and PAN would likely join the Jokowi administration's political party coalition. Hence, Gerindra and PKS will be the only opposition parties, he confirmed.
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Translator: Shofi Ayudiana, Fardah
Editor: Sri Haryati
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