'Make sure everyone registers to vote'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto yesterday urged members of
\nelection registration committees to make sure that all eligible
\nvoters have their names enrolled.<\/p>\n
"Don't let anyone be ignored or be registered twice," Soeharto
\ntold the committee which visited to register him at his residence
\non Jl. Cendana, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Soeharto was registered along with his youngest son Hutomo
\nMandala Putra.<\/p>\n
The 20-day registration drive began simultaneously throughout
\nthe country.<\/p>\n
Registration officers began knocking on doors registering all
\nIndonesians who are 17 or older, and teenagers who are already
\nmarried, as voters in the 1997 general election, scheduled for
\nMay.<\/p>\n
Under the Indonesian electoral system voters will choose their
\nrepresentatives for their local and the national legislatures.<\/p>\n
Soeharto and his son's names were officially recorded by
\nregistration officer Zaenal Asyikin, who was accompanied by
\nneighborhood chief Mrs. Zoelmy Hayati Sri Tando and Gondangdia
\ndistrict chief M. Sanusi.<\/p>\n
Also present yesterday was Minister of Home Affairs Yogie S.M.
\nas head of the National Election Institute, Attorney General
\nSinggih who is head of the Election Supervision Committee,
\nGovernor of Jakarta Surjadi Soedirdja and Central Jakarta Mayor
\nAbdul Kahfi.<\/p>\n
After answering a set of basic questions required for the
\nprocedure, Soeharto then asked them what he should do if he loses
\nhis registration card.<\/p>\n
"Well, we hope it won't get lost but if it does there's always
\nthe data that we've collected," one of the committee members
\nreplied.<\/p>\n
Later on Zaenal Asyikin said the President called on them to
\nbe diligent in their task. "If necessary, we have to visit a
\nhouse several times. That's what he told us," Zaenal said.<\/p>\n
After registering the President, the committee proceeded to
\nVice-President Try Sutrisno's residence on Jl. Diponegoro,
\nCentral Jakarta. There, the Vice President, Mrs. Try Sutrisno and
\ntheir three children were registered.<\/p>\n
House of Representatives speaker Wahono, after being
\nregistered at his house yesterday, said there must be no
\ndiscrimination during the process.<\/p>\n
"However, I'm sure that voter registration is being conducted
\nhonestly," he said as quoted by Antara.<\/p>\n
The question of unregistered eligible voters has in the past
\nbeen brought up by the two opposition parties, the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party (PDI) and the United Development Party.<\/p>\n
PDI chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri, in a statement
\nyesterday, urged anyone eligible, particularly first time voters,
\nto make sure they registered.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Tebet district chief, M. Syarif Hassan, said
\nyesterday the registration committee in his area would make sure
\nthat those in hospitals and currently being detained by the
\npolice are also registered.<\/p>\n
Syarif also explained that eligible voters who have not
\nreturned from the haj pilgrimage by the end of the registration
\nperiod can have their names added on to the additional voting
\nlist.<\/p>\n
He added that registration of homeless voters will be done on
\nJuly 13-14.<\/p>\n
"The main point is that we try to include anyone who is
\neligible," Syarif said. As reported by Antara up to 1,000
\neligible voters were not registered in the Tebet district during
\nthe last election in 1992.<\/p>\n
In Surabaya, East Java Governor Basofi Sudirman was also
\nregistered at his house yesterday. Antara reported that the
\ngovernor registered 24 people as voters in his household.<\/p>\n
They were Basofi and his wife, his two sons, three aides, six
\nsecurity personnel, eight servants and three chauffeurs. (mds)<\/p>\n
Editorial -- Page 4<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/make-sure-everyone-registers-to-vote-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }