2019 Elections recorded an apprehensive condition with a significant number of election organizers, including PPK (District Election Organizers), PPS (Sub-district Election Organizers), KPPS (Polling Station Election Organizers), and Security Officers falling ill and even losing their lives. It's an ironic condition, election as democracy means to bring forth the nation's leaders, has come at a high cost with many election organizers falling sick or passing away.
According to data from the Ministry of Health, the number of 2019 Election officials who died was 527 people and 11,239 people who were sick. Specifically in the Province of the Special Region of Yogyakarta, the number of Election organizers who experienced illness was 52 people, 4 people miscarried and 15 died. The workload is quite heavy, psychological pressure, irregular eating and rest patterns, no working hours so that they often keep working late at night cause the body to experience a decrease in the immune system or immunity. Some of the factors causing election organizers to fall ill or die include being over 50 years old, fatigue, irregular eating and resting patterns, young pregnancy, and having a history of diseases such as heart disease, diabetes mellitus, stomach acid, high blood pressure and asthma.
Health Management
Considering these facts, the health management of election organizers during the 2024 election stage become a crucial aspect and should be one of the focal points of attention besides technical electoral matters. Election organizer health management involves a series of activities carried out in a coordinated, integrated and sustainable manner to maintain and improve health status in the form of disease prevention, health promotion, medical treatment and health recovery.
The health management of election organizers includes before, during and after voting day on 14 February 2024. Activities in health management include promotive, preventive, curative and rehabilitative efforts. Promotive and preventive efforts are carried out through health literacy, health consultation services and regular health checks, for example related to blood pressure, blood sugar levels, uric acid, and so on. While curative and rehabilitative efforts are carried out by providing fast and appropriate treatment to Election organizers who experience illness so that they can return to carrying out their duties properly. In implementing the health management, the KPU needs a support system from various parties and one of them is from the university.
The Special Region of Yogyakarta (DIY), which is known as a city of students, has many higher education institutions so that their roles should be optimized as a support system for the health management of election organizers. In 2022 there has been a memorandum of understanding between the KPU of the Republic of Indonesia and Seven Universities in the Special Region of Yogyakarta. KPU DIY (DIY Regional General Election Commission) is also planning this with 13 universities. So that there are 20 universities in DIY that will become KPU partners, both at the central KPU and at the provincial level. All of these initiatives reflect the commitment to serve democracy through the organization of the 2024 Elections.
In my personal view, one of the partnerships with universities can be developed in programs and activities related to the health management of election organizers, both physical and mental health. This is very important to do so that the 2024 concurrent Elections will continue to prioritize human aspects in the midst of demands for tasks that must be carried out according to regulations, completed on time, and accurate results. Election organizers as individuals with feelings are not robotic figures driven by machines. As individuals with emotions, the physical and mental well-being of election organizers have rights that must be fulfilled so that their conditions remains sound and stable.
The health management program and activities for election organizers can be implemented through the Tri Dharma of Higher Education, particularly in the field of Community Service (Pengabdian Masyarakat). Every lecturer at the Higher Education Institutions has an obligation to conduct community service at least once per semester. Additionally, the Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) scheme can also be utilized for students' involvement in these activities. Both of these schemes can be carried out simultaneously, focusing on the theme “Pengabdian untuk Demokrasi Negeriku” [Service for the Democracy of Our Nation].
Let us strive together to ensure that the 2024 Elections will no longer claim the lives of its organizers. We aim to build a public perspective on Humanistic Elections that considers the success of the elections not solely based on low disputes, low electoral violations, and high voter participation. Instead, the success of the elections should also be measured by the fairness towards the physical and mental well-being of the election organizers, maintaining a balance between their physical and spiritual health throughout all stages of the 2024 Elections. []
WURI RAHMAWATI
Head of the Division of Data and Information Planning, Bantul General Election Commission 2018-2023
