As Jokowi seeks a second term, rural voters have doubts
GRINTING: Two months ago, Indonesian farmer Tama harvested several tonnes of shallots from a small plot of land he had rented in the village of Grinting in central Java.
In several ways, Tama had President Joko Widodo to thank for his crop.
The Village Fund programme, launched by Joko – or Jokowi as he is fondly known as – paid to turn a dirt track between his house and the farm into a paved road. It also brought more electricity, powering lights that trap moths at night, cutting his spending on pesticides.
Tama’s shallots were transported to the capital Jakarta, 250km to the west, on a new toll road that was part of an infrastructure drive the president led.
But Jokowi has also sought to control retail prices, leading to more food imports and a cap on the market price of staples such as rice and shallots, making it hard for farmers to sell at a profit.
So as Jokowi seeks a second fiveyear term in this week’s election, some farmers across the highly populated island of Java wonder whether he should get their vote.
Tama, 42, did not earn enough in February to repay a loan due on harvest day because shallot prices were so low.
“I had to borrow money, or work on anything I can find,” said Tama.
Although Jokowi is heading into the election with a comfortable polling lead over his challenger, retired general Prabowo Subianto, his opponents have seized on his agriculture policy to claim that some of the infrastructure projects don’t help ordinary people.
Indonesia’s economic growth has hovered at about 5% over Jokowi’s first term, but there has been a drop in real income for the country’s nearly 40 million farmers, who account for a third of the labour force.
“The government has chosen populist policies and they led to farmers’ not getting full attention,” said Josua Pardede, an economist at Jakarta-based Bank Permata.
Jokowi’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
Sriyanto Saputro, a spokesman for Prabowo’s campaign in Central Java, said internal surveys suggested he was leading in Brebes. — Reuters