KPK Pushes Two-Term Cap for Party Leaders, Gains Golkar’s Support

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Chairman of the Golkar Party’s Central Executive Board, Yahya Zaini, has voiced support for the Corruption Eradication Commission’s (KPK) proposal to limit political party chairpersons to two terms, saying the measure would strengthen cadre development and ensure healthy leadership rotation.

Yahya noted that Golkar has long applied the two-term limit internally. He stressed that leadership changes are necessary to prevent the party’s strength from relying on a single figure.

“In Golkar, the political reality is that the maximum term of office for a general chairperson is two terms. So, I agree with limiting the term of office for a general chairperson to two terms,” Yahya told reporters on Friday, April 24, 2026, as quoted by RRI.

He added that leadership changes are commonplace in Golkar to maintain cadre development, leadership circulation, and political rejuvenation, practices that predate the KPK’s proposal. “To ensure that the party’s strength doesn’t depend on one figure, cadre development and political rejuvenation are necessary,” he said.

Yahya also argued that term limits are increasingly relevant given the growing number of younger voters. He estimated that Gen Z and Millennial voters will make up 60–70 percent of the electorate in the 2029 elections.

“Rejuvenating party leadership is inevitable,” he said, while noting that the final decision rests on political parties agreeing to revise political laws, particularly the Political Parties Law.

The KPK previously proposed capping party chairpersons’ terms at two terms, citing weak internal cadre development processes that often lead to costly practices, including allegations of political dowries.

“Because the cadre development process isn’t running smoothly, we often see cadres moving around. However, after moving in, they can quickly become, in quotation marks, ‘champions,’ or those supported by the number one candidate,” said KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo at the commission’s Red and White Building in Jakarta on Thursday, April 23, 2026, as quoted by RRI.

The KPK also recommended improving cadre development systems to make them more transparent and hierarchical, thereby reducing political costs. Limiting chairpersons’ terms is seen as a way to encourage leadership regeneration and strengthen accountable party governance. ***