As people in Indonesia prepare to vote for a new president, the BBC’s Indonesian service has asked people across the country to give their views on the issues that matter to them most.
JAKARTA
Vincentia Widyasari, humanitarian worker
Right now, my concern is mainly about the fairness of the election. The media has exposed the amount of fraud. Originally I didn’t think it was a big thing, but now I realise what a serious problem it is. The system is designed by those who want to protect their power. So, to protest against it, I’ve decided to not vote for the incumbent president. I haven’t decided yet whether it’s going to be Megawati or Jusuf Kalla. I know that the incumbent will win, but I want him to get the message that he is not that strong and that he should be careful.
Paryadi, street vendor
The most important thing for us is that there are free schools. My eldest has already dropped out of school because I could not afford the education fee for all my children. The other important thing is cheap basic products, including food.
Prof Firman Lubis, Indonesian University
The new president should create a healthier environment for all. For example, he should tell people not to throw rubbish everywhere and he should ban smoking. This is needed to prevent the spread of diseases. The presidential candidates are promising to provide free health facilities. This is only in order to attract voters but what’s really important are the preventive measures, which can be achieved through tighter regulations and educational information.
Mira, unemployed
I am hoping for a president who can make Indonesia a better place, who can create jobs and fight corruption.
Hari, unemployed
I have been looking for a job in several cities but I haven’t been able to find a job. I don’t have any expectations from the new president as I don’t think our situation will get better.
Sudarto, masseur
The new president should channel all efforts to create jobs for the poor, to subsidise education and improve health facilities.
BANDA ACEH
Adnan Beruransyah, spokesman for Aceh Party
Yudhoyono and Jusuf Kalla are our peace figures. They played central roles in gaining peace in Aceh. We let the Acehnese people choose whoever they wanted to elect.
ACEH
Said Mahdi, Langsa
Jusuf Kalla has never hurt the Acehnese peoples’ feelings and he does not have any link whatsoever with the Aceh conflict.
Yongki, a farmer in East Aceh
We will not elect a president based on ethnicity, but on kindness and co-operation.
AMBON
Ambon was rocked by sectarian conflict in the early 2000. It claimed more than 2000 lives and displaced more than 750,000 people.
Mahyudin, shop owner
The most important thing is for us now is peace. What I expect from the new president is to maintain the peace. My business is doing well now. But during the conflict we kept evacuating from one place to another. We can’t achieve anything when there’s violence.
JOGJAKARTA
Arianti
I am hoping for someone who could do better on diplomacy, particularly in protecting Indonesians who works abroad. I expect the new president to do more to guarantee workers’ protection. There are still cases of abuses of Indonesian domestic workers abroad (in Malaysia) by their employers.
EAST JAVA
East Java is the base of Nahdlatul Ulama, the largest Muslim organisation in Indonesia with around 30 million voters. Observers predicts both presidential candidates, the incumbent Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Jusuf Kalla will get similar number of votes.
Toyibah, Jombang
I will vote for whoever my cleric choses. If there’s any problem, then my cleric will support me.
Andi, Jombang
I will vote for the person I think is capable of doing the job. I won’t follow what my cleric does.
SEBATIK
Ajikuning is a village in Sebatik island, East Kalimantan, which borders Malaysia. It is near waters claimed by both Malaysia and Indonesia.
Umar, villager, Ajikuning
My hope is that the new president will keep developing our village. The Malaysian side is much more developed than our area. Because of this, we always cross over to the Malaysian side to sell our products.
MAKASSAR
**Abdullah, university student **
I am not going to vote in the presidential elections. All the candidates have already held positions of power. They never think about poor people after they get elected. Poor people feature only in their pre-election promises. Therefore, I won’t give my vote to anybody.
PAPUA
Ramses Oheo, community leader, Jayapura
I hope the new president, whoever it may be, will take stricter measures to fight separatist movement in Papua. This is our most urgent priority.
Ruth, Jayapura
I hope that the new president will be able to handle all crimes in Papua, including the separatist movement, so that we could all live in peace.