TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Jakarta gubernatorial candidate pair Anies Baswedan and Sandiaga Uno skipped an unofficial gubernatorial debate at local channel Kompas TV called ‘Debat di Rosi’ aired on Sunday evening, April 2, 2017. Anies-Sandi campaign team has revealed the reasons behind their absence.
Anies-Sandi media team deputy head Naufal Firman Yursak said that the team had never confirmed the candidate pair’s agreement to attend the debate. “But the Rosi show continued to promote the debate,” Naufal said in a written statement on Sunday, April 2.
Naufal said that the team has informed the organizer on March 27 that only Sandiaga Uno could attend the show because Anies had already joined a debate at Metro TV channel a week before. Naufal has lamented Rosi show’s claim that the debate was “The First Encounter between Two Candidate Pairs ahead of the Runoff Election.”
“It’s an inaccurate reporting… The Rosi show has no ethics,” he said.
Secondly, Naufal said that he has asked for the organizer to invite the neutral audience.
He said that the campaign team expected a dialogue to discuss the programs, instead of sharpening the divide. Therefore, team Anies-Sandi had proposed for a debate to be attended by 30-50 neutral audience.
“The Rosi show declined the proposed limited invitation and confirmed that it would go ahead [with its plans], having been told that Bang Sandi would not present as a consequence,”
Naufal expressed that Anies and Sandi, both as a pair and as individuals, are not traumatized by debate. According to him, Anies has proven that he could dominate Ahok in the previous debate last week. “Some said that his [Ahok] defeat in the debate due to his sore gums,” he said.
FRISKI RIANA
