Political Education Prevents Hoaxes and Money Politics Ahead of Regional Elections
Jakarta – Associate Professor of the Islamic University of Riau, Dr. Fatmawati, said that the public needs to be equipped with a deep understanding so that they can play an active role in the political process, as well as prevent money politics and the spread of hoaxes. Ahead of the 2024 Regional Elections, political education is an important element in building public awareness of a healthy and fair democracy.
According to Dr. Fatmawati, political education has a significant role in increasing public political participation.
“Good political education allows the public to be more critical of political promises and not be easily influenced by the enticement of money politics,” she said.
With a deeper understanding, the public can make rational decisions and not get caught up in offers of money politics that often appear ahead of the Regional Elections.
Fatmawati found that in the practice of money politics, the value of the money distributed ranged from IDR 100,000 to IDR 300,000, and sometimes even in the form of goods such as magic coms, fans, or TVs. People often look forward to gifts from candidates, even though regulations in Election Law No. 07 of 2017 prohibit this practice.
“The many practices of money politics are due to weak law enforcement and the short campaign time of candidates in the community,” added Dr. Fatmawati.
In addition, the circulation of hoaxes on social media also increased sharply during the campaign period. With wide access in the digital era, hoaxes have become a destructive tool that is often used to spread negative campaigns and black campaigns.
“The trend of hoaxes in political news is most dominant approaching the election,” said Dr. Fatmawati.
She emphasized that the public must increase digital literacy, so that they can sort out valid information and not get caught up in black campaigns circulating on social media. Dr. Fatmawati also reminded the public of the importance of vigilance in receiving and sharing information on social media.
“Messages received must be read carefully, analyzed, and cross-checked before finally being shared,” she said.
Strong digital literacy is expected to be able to protect society from the dangers of hoaxes that can damage the integrity of the democratic process. With increasingly mature political education, society is expected to not only be participants, but also become drivers of positive social change.
A society that understands its rights and obligations will tend to be more active in monitoring policies, demanding accountability, and maintaining the integrity of democracy, which ultimately supports the creation of honest, fair, and clean regional elections from money politics and hoaxes.
