JAKARTA: With four days left of campaigning in Indonesia's presidential election, candidates are making a last-ditch attempt to woo undecided voters.

On Tuesday night, the vice presidential candidates had the chance to make their case in a televised debate. It was the second and final televised debate for the vice presidential candidates before polling day on July 8.

But no one came out with convincing solutions to improve the quality of life for Indonesia's 230 million people.

Prabowo Subianto, Megawati Sukarnoputri's running-mate, came close. In his usual spirited manner, the former general said his administration would provide healthcare insurance for all Indonesians, three years after they are elected to office.

"We need about 15 trillion rupiah for healthcare insurance. According to my calculation, we can do it with efficiency and debt re-scheduling. We are the only candidates proposing debt-rescheduling," said Prabowo.

"We will invest the funds in healthcare insurance, social security and education. This is allowed by the UN, developed countries and accepted by the Millenium Development Goals."

But the idea was dismissed as unrealistic by Boediono – the incumbent president's running-mate and a respected economist.

"Mr Prabowo just offered a dream where trillions of rupiah will come our way in one to two years. It's something to be studied again because most likely, it will not happen," said Boediono.

He said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration will continue to put healthcare as one of its top priorities, but did not commit to a specific target.

However, there was a definite goal set by Wiranto – the running-mate of Vice-President Jusuf Kalla – for Indonesia to re-introduce family planning.

"If it goes to the extreme, I think having two children is enough," he said.

Indonesia has abandoned a two-child policy adopted successfully during the Suharto era to control the country's population growth.

On the whole, to some observers, the debate continues to disappoint as no real solutions came out from the 90-minute programme.

It is, at the same time, important to note that the problems facing Indonesia are huge. The incumbent is trying to make a case that incremental progress has been made and what is needed now is a continuation of the efforts.


- CNA/so