Only 75 Supporters Allowed to Attend for Presidential and Vice Presidential Candidates' Debates

Author: Dian Kencana
December 11, 2023

General Election Commission Building in Jakarta, where the first debate will be held. Photo: KPU

SEAToday.com, Jakarta-The General Election Commission (KPU) has set a maximum of 75 supporters for each pair of presidential and vice-presidential candidates attending the inaugural debate on December 12, 2023. The first debate, lasting 120 minutes, will cover topics such as government, human rights, corruption eradication, democracy strengthening, public service improvement, and citizen harmony. The event will be hosted at the General Election Commission's office.

The General Elections Commission Chairman, Hasyim Asyari, said the supporter quota was agreed upon during a coordination meeting between the KPU and the three candidate pairs' teams. The decision on which supporters attend is left to the discretion of each candidate pair.

The General Elections Commission has also announced 11 panelists for the first presidential and vice-presidential debate scheduled for Tuesday (12/12) at the KPU Office, Jakarta. The 11 panelists are competent individuals in their fields, with the majority being academics from various state universities in Indonesia.

Here are the names of the 11 panelists:

Mada Sukmajati (Political Science Expert at Gadjah Mada University)
Rudi Rohi (Political Science Expert of Nusa Cendana University)
Lita Tyesta (Constitutional Law Expert at Diponegoro University)
Khairul Fahmi (Law Expert of Andalas University)
Agus Riewanto (Constitutional Law Expert of Sebelas Maret University)
Susi Dwi Harijanti (Constitutional Law Expert of Padjadjaran University)
Bayu Dwi Anggono (Professor at the University of Jember)
Ahmad Taufan Damanik (Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission 2017-2022)
Phil. Al Makin (Professor of Religious Studies at Sunan Kalijaga State Islamic University)
Gun Gun Heryanto (Lecturer at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University)
Wawan Mas'udi (Dean of Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Gadjah Mada University)

The first debate will be held for Presidential Candidate, and the topics are about Governance, Law, Human Rights, Fighting Corruption, Strengthening Democracy, Improving Public Services, and Civic Harmony.