Councillors bicker over voting procedure<\/p>\n
Novan Iman Santosa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
City Council factions are divided on the voting procedure for the
\nSept. 11 gubernatorial election especially concerning
\nconfidentiality in the voting process.<\/p>\n
Contacted separately on Friday, councillors from the Justice
\nParty (PK) and National Mandate Party (PAN) factions told The
\nJakarta Post that they preferred that councillors mark a cross on
\nthe ballot paper or perforate the paper instead of writing the
\ncandidate's names on the paper.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic
\nParty of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) factions insisted that
\ncouncillors write the names of the candidates.<\/p>\n
\"Our faction wants the ballot paper to be marked with crosses
\nas it will guarantee the confidentiality of the vote as required
\nby the 1999 Law No. 22 on regional autonomy,\" said chairman of PK
\nfaction, Achmad Heryawan.<\/p>\n
\"Writing the names will open the possibility for certain deals
\nto take place.\"<\/p>\n
Achmad said that certain groups could add special words to
\nsignify their group so each candidate would know by the
\nsignifying mark which group had voted for them.<\/p>\n
Suppose several groups supported a candidate named Amir, said
\nAchmad. The first group could write \"Amir OK\" while the second
\ngroup could choose to write \"Amir Yes\". The third group could use
\nanother code.<\/p>\n
Achmad said the Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic
\nParty of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) factions based their argument
\non practices carried out at both the House of Representatives
\n(DPR) and the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).<\/p>\n
\"Voting procedures at the DPR and MPR are carried out by
\nwriting candidates' names on blank paper. It has become a
\nconvention at those state institutions.<\/p>\n
\"But we (City Council) have our own conventions. Besides,
\nmarking crosses against the names on the ballot paper will
\nprevent unfair practices,\" said Achmad.<\/p>\n
Achmad also admitted that the council's election regulations
\ndid not specify whether the ballot paper had to be crossed,
\nperforated, or written on.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, councillor Syamsuardi Botan of PAN faction said
\nthat there were vested interests at stake if Golkar and PDI
\nPerjuangan kept insisting on writing the candidates names.<\/p>\n
\"If we want to really adopt the one man one vote policy, we
\nshould perforate the ballots.<\/p>\n
\"Besides, it has been a City Council convention to perforate
\nthe ballots instead of writing names. We don't have to copy the
\npractices of the MPR and DPR,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Syamsuardi also said that perforating the ballot paper would
\nenable councillors to use their own conscience in choosing a
\ngubernatorial candidate.<\/p>\n
\"This procedure enables us to diverge from our party's policy
\nif we believe the party's policy is against public interests.\"<\/p>\n
There have been rumors that PDI Perjuangan faction is
\ninsisting on writing the candidates' names as a way to control
\nits members loyalty.<\/p>\n
A split occurred in the faction with the decision to support
\nincumbent Governor Sutiyoso's renomination despite his alleged
\ninvolvement in the July 27, 1996 attack on PDI headquarters.<\/p>\n
Faction members will be free to vote for candidates other than
\nSutiyoso if the ballot is cast by either putting a cross against
\nthe name or by perforating the name on the ballot papers.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/councillors-bicker-over-voting-procedure-1447893297",
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