STATE CIVIL APPARATUS IN ELECTION 2019, CAN IT BE NEUTRAL?

Abstract

In the implementation of general elections, the violation of neutrality of the State Civil Apparatus (ASN) is a phenomenon that always occurs. State Civil Apparatus as bureaucraticapparatus in charge of public services have to be professional and avoid the influence of politics practices in elections. A neutral ASN is expected to carry out their profession with afocus on their duties and obligations to run all government programs both at central andregional level, in the hustle and bustle of elections. The bureaucracy must be proponent to the interests of the state and society. Bureaucracy shall be the adhesive of the nation and strengthen the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). The literature study in this study shows that to maintain the neutrality of the ASN in elections and regional headelections (pilkada), it is necessary to refer to Law No. 5 of 2014 with derivative regulations.Therefore, the authors propose several steps to be taken as policy advices (1) firmness and consistency of the implementation of existing regulations; (2) more detailed and non-overlapping rules need to be issued; (3) evaluation of recommendations from the State Civil Apparatus Commission (KASN) which were abandoned by officials; (4) socialization of regulations that inclusive to all ASNs; (5) more effective supervision; (6) strengthen thefunction of monitoring and controlling of the system merit; (7) improve the level ofcompliance of the ASN on rules on the neutrality, especially on the standards and criteria ofneutrality.