Jakartans start preparing for Monday runoff<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Crisp, white, and a sight to behold, thought Nur, 25, who spent
\nSaturday with his fellow workers erecting 11 tents that will
\nserve as polling stations on Monday, on Jl. Kartika Utama in
\nPondok Indah housing estate, South Jakarta.
\n They braved the sun, but putting up the tents was hardly a
\nbattle for the 12 workers. While they measure some 50 square
\nmeters each, the men stretched the vast sheets of fabric over
\nframes like old hands.<\/p>\n
\"We are yet to find out how much we would be paid for our
\nwork,\" Nur, who is employed by an event organizer, told The
\nJakarta Post.<\/p>\n
He was more up on the price of the shelters themselves, saying
\na 100-square-meter tent costs Rp 1 million (some US$108),
\nincluding the rent of six tables and three dozen chairs.<\/p>\n
All over the city, workers, residents and local election
\norganizers have been busy preparing polling stations for the
\nrunoff, which will complete the nation's first direct
\npresidential election.<\/p>\n
Some of the stations are upmarket, like the ones in Pondok
\nIndah, but the Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPUD) only
\nallocated Rp 250,000 for each of the city's 24,000 polling
\nstations, so others are a simple affair.<\/p>\n
Priyono, a member of the election committee for polling
\nstation 132 at community unit 15 (RW) in Pondok Indah, said that
\nresidents had chipped in to pay for the tents. However, none of
\nthem were seen at the location on Saturday.<\/p>\n
\"Only the chairman is a Pondok Indah resident, while the
\nmembers are from other neighborhoods. Unlike other areas, only a
\nfew Pondok Indah residents are prepared to be committee members,\"
\nhe told the Post.<\/p>\n
According to Kari, a member of the election committee for
\nKramat Pela subdistrict, near Kemang in South Jakarta, the money
\nfrom the KPUD was just enough to build a modest polling station.<\/p>\n
Also the chief of neighborhood unit 2 (RT), Kari said that
\nonly 10 out of 49 houses in his jurisdiction were occupied by
\npermanent residents. The others were rented, mostly by
\nexpatriates.<\/p>\n
Plastic and bamboo tents were erected in Grogol Utara
\nsubdistrict, also in South Jakarta. On Saturday afternoon,
\nresidents and committee members were just starting to put up
\nstation No. 097, which will serve about 300 voters.<\/p>\n
The tents had already been used for two elections -- the
\nlegislative election on April 5 and the first round of the
\npresidential election on July 5 -- but the committee didn't want
\nto waste the KPUD's money.<\/p>\n
\"By doing that, we can allocate the rest of the money for
\nmailing and other necessities during the election,\" said Suwarno,
\nchairman of the committee for station 097.<\/p>",
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