Jakarta—In an upscale area of the capital Jakarta, Ganjar Pranowo says he can win Indonesia’s upcoming election against the odds by focusing on bread-and-butter issues, a lesson learned from his upbringing in a mountainside village.
“Siding with the small… the poor. Why do I say that? Because I myself experienced that situation since childhood,” the ruling party candidate told AFP in an exclusive interview.
“The matters are simple. Access to education, access to health, access to housing, access to food, which they want to get equally like others.”
The former governor of Central Java will face defense minister and frontrunner Prabowo Subianto and former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan in February in a vote that will decide which will lead the world’s third-largest democracy.
Pranowo’s humble demeanor is a stark contrast to the political dynasties and ex-military figures with deep roots in the Suharto era who have dominated Indonesian politics since the end of the dictator’s three-decade rule in 1998.
The 55-year-old Pranowo is the candidate for President Joko Widodo’s ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), which has ties to one of the country’s founding fathers.
But Subianto, 72, chose Widodo’s eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka, 36, as his running mate, casting doubt on Pranowo’s chances as the benefit of a link to the president goes to his main rival.
Yet he says he remains “very, very” optimistic he can pull off an upset without Widodo’s explicit support.
“We can’t depend on one person. Not at all,” he said.
Critics fear Widodo is trying to usher in his own political dynasty with his son entering the race after a controversial court ruling that lowered the eligible age of candidates, handed down by the president’s brother-in-law.
Subianto has opened up a wide lead over his rivals in opinion polls after appointing Gibran, with Pranowo in a distant second place.
Recent surveys also show third-place Baswedan threatening to overtake Pranowo for a potential place in any second-round runoff vote.
But Pranowo remains cautious to criticise the man he is trying to succeed, who has said he supports the tickets of all the candidates, or the decision of Widodo’s son to enter the race for a rival.
“It’s an ordinary political choice. And we are never afraid of that,” he said.
While Baswedan has taken up the position of the government’s main opponent, Pranowo is largely promising to carry on Widodo’s policies alongside running mate and chief security minister Mahfud MD.
On Indonesia’s capital moving from Jakarta to Nusantara on Borneo Island in August, he says he will proceed despite criticism from environmentalists and Baswedan that other cities like Jakarta should be prioritised first.
“If it has been decided, that’s it,” he said. “There is no other word than to carry it out.”
Frontrunner Subianto is pledging the same tact, but Pranowo remains optimistic he can secure the highest office with a campaign focused on grassroots support by appealing to ordinary Indonesians.
“We are supported by the strength of the communities. We go down (to the grassroots) every day. We can feel the voices of the people,” he said.
“We want to be fast, not a slow bureaucracy. And usually those who have many complaints are the small people.”
But his challenge to the presidency has come under threat from other parties in Indonesian society, including sections of the army.
After an assault against a group of his volunteers in Central Java last month in which seven civilians were injured and six soldiers were named as suspects, he demanded his campaign be treated fairly.
“We use this as an education, that ‘hey, election workers, the government, be careful’,” he said, adding representatives of the state should remain neutral.
“Don’t destroy the democratic process.”
If he does secure the mantle from Widodo, he says he will put the interests of Indonesians first.
“Serving the people. Nothing else,” he said. “From birth to death, that’s the duty of the state.”
The second of three presidential debates takes place on Sunday. AFP