No Matter Black or White

Deng Xiao Ping: "It doesn't matter a white cat or black cat, as long as it can catch mice, it is a good cat."

The 2009 presidential election had spent as much as Rp. 50 trillion. For the next 5 years (2010 -2014) another Rp. 15 trillion will be "wasted". For the sake of democracy, in terms of budgeting allocation priority, we sacrifice our people from lack of education, malnutrition, indecent housing.

The outstanding different between our fledgling democratic elections and Western's established democratic elections is the party's distinguished character.

In the paragon of democracy, in the western countries, we can see the different party with the different character and idea. For instance, in United States, Republic Party is the party with idea of no or less state intervention, while in contrast Democratic Party more receptive with the big role of government. Republicans deny the abortion, homosexual, while Democrats deem those as the rights to choose.

We have no such different characters of parties like that. Can we distinguish Golkar Party, Democratic Party and Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P)? They are all the same of no character. They always waffle about how to develop Indonesia, but their program are normative and standard such eradicate poverty, create jobs, promote people's health status, etc.

So, if they are the same, why do we need elections? Eko Patrio from National Mandate Party (PAN), Tantowi Yahya from Golkar Party and Rachel Maryam from The Greater Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra) have no different ideas (if they have one!) and position in making law.

In my opinion we don't need too much election, because the parties are the same in the blur substance and elusive agenda. Please stop wasting money anymore! What we should encourage is meritocracy in the state system, let the best and brightest minds manage the bureaucracy.

Let us take Singapore as an example. With only single party really exists, the election is only to confirm the development achievement. The government run the state on meritocracy basis. The government recruits the best students to join the bureaucracy and give them the best education abroad and let them experience government affairs for at least 15 years and get the brightest ones to be leaders. This system leads Singapore to be one of the cleanest and well-run bureaucracy in the world.

So my fellow countrymen do still believe in or support those nonsense elections for our prosperity?