Which one will win?

Kid: A wager Dad... the bicycle vs the horse... which one will win?

With recent surveys showing presidential candidate former New Order general Prabowo Subianto (who appears at campaign rallies on horse-back wearing military riding boots and traditional keris dagger) now trailing rival Joko Widodo (who's slogan is 'Simple, Honest and Close to the People') by just 3-4%, analysts predict that the July 9 election will be a tight race and neither will win with a landslide.

Kompas - May 31, 2014

Political contract

Hatta Rajasa, the running mate of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto, has denied that the pair had ever promised a top cabinet position to Golkar Party chairperson Aburizal Bakrie following an earlier statement by Prabowo that he had offered Bakrie the position of 'chief minister' in return for Golkar's controversial support for his 'Red and White' electoral coalition.

Kompas - May 28, 2014

Think carefully

Writing on clown reads: Track record, transactional politics, political acrobatics, black campaigns. Ballot paper reads: Conscience.

Critics say people should think carefully before voting for former Suharto era general Prabowo Subianto in the July 9 presidential election (pipres) given his dark past and allegations of corruption hanging over leading members of the coalition of parties backing him, which itself was cobbled together based on promises of ministerial and cabinet posts.

Kompas - May 24, 2014

Thinking about our misfortunes

Man: Thinking about our misfortunes right Mr?

Now that the legislative elections are over, the political parties (parpol) have abandoned any pretence of representing the interests of their constituencies and turned their attention to manoeuvering to secure promises of future ministerial and cabinet posts in exchange for backing one of the two presidential tickets in the July 9 presidential election.

Kompas - May 21, 2014

Overseas junkets

Lawmakers, whose terms will end in October, are making sure that the whopping US$26 million budgeted by the House in 2013 for overseas junkets doesn't go to waste, with three groups of lawmakers visiting New Zealand in April and May to conduct so-called 'comparative studies' to gather information related to legislation (one group will visit the NZ parliament while it is in recess), which critics say can easily be obtained from the internet

Kompas - May 19, 2014