REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BEKASI -- Sixth President of RI Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) highlighted a wave of criticism from various universities against President Jokowi. The chairman of the upper house of the Democratic Party also responded to the narrative that there must be fraud if the 2024 presidential election takes place in one round.

This was stated by SBY in his political speech entitled “Indonesia 5 Years Next; The Good Ones Continue, The Unimproved Ones” at Avenzel Hotel, Bekasi City, West Java, on Wednesday (7/2/2024), exactly seven days before the 2024 election vote.

SBY highlighted both issues when presenting the results of its observations throughout the 2024 election campaign. He admitted that his heart and mind were disturbed by the wave of criticism of the campus and the accusation that the presidential election must have been fraudulent.

SBY first highlighted a wave of criticism from the campus, which was known to be directed at President Jokowi for being perceived as having strayed from democratic values. According to him, academics are implicitly concerned that the 2024 elections will not take place peacefully, honestly and fairly.

“At the end of the current campaign period, there are critical movements and statements from the college community. In various regions, a number of rectors, professors and students voiced the importance of peaceful, honest and fair elections,” SBY said.

At the same time, SBY said, there are also further political statements related to the 2024 presidential election. The statement was “if the presidential election only lasts one round, then it is fraudulent” and “if the election is fraudulent we will not accept it, and the country is ready for chaos”.

As an overview, the Democratic Party fielded the vice-presidential running mate Prabowo-Gibran in the 2024 presidential election. The number 2 candidate has the potential to win the presidential election in one round because their electability has already passed the 50 percent mark.

SBY said that the wave of criticism from the campus and accusations of the presidential election must be fraudulent did not appear in four previous elections in Indonesia. According to him, the accusations of cheating are exaggerated, but criticism from the campus should not be ignored either.

“My opinion, accusing, moreover, of ensuring that this presidential election must be fraudulent and therefore the result will definitely be rejected, is certainly excessive. However, on the other hand, ignoring outside voices who fear that the presidential election will be fraudulent, is certainly not wise either,” said SBY.

He wants the results of the 2024 presidential election to be valid and accepted by the people. With that legitimacy, the president-elect will have strong legitimacy and his power is also a blessing.

Therefore, SBY invites all parties to work together to ensure that the 2024 presidential election takes place honestly and fairly. “The state and all the devices and resources it has must be neutral. I think the space for that is available,” he said.

Furthermore, SBY called the state, especially the election organizers, fully responsible for ensuring the conduct of honest and fair elections. He also called on the wider community to preserve Indonesia's reputation as a democratic country.

“Let us prevent that there are no irregularities and there are no bad things, so that there is no need then for history to correct them,” SBY affirms.

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