Voter registrars unready on 1st day<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Unprepared officers marred the first day of
\nvoter registration nationwide on Monday, despite some people's
\nenthusiasm to sign up for the June 7 general election.<\/p>\n
Many local registrars at the subdistrict level, called
\nSubdistrict Polling Committee (PPS), in Java, West Sumatra, South
\nKalimantan and Sulawesi contacted by The Jakarta Post said
\nregistration forms and directives were not yet available.<\/p>\n
In some areas like West Sumatra, West Java, East Java and East
\nTimor, many subdistricts do not have polling committees set up
\nyet.<\/p>\n
Most registrars observed also admitted to a lack of knowledge
\non how to proceed with registrations, a totally new way of voter
\nregistration from the old system applied over the past 30 years.<\/p>\n
Under the new electoral law, registration is done on a
\nvoluntary basis. In the past, people were mobilized, in many
\ninstances even forced, to vote.<\/p>\n
Out of the country's 210 million population, an approximate
\n130 million people are eligible to vote this year, with 6.5
\nmillion of them first-time voters.<\/p>\n
Thousands of residents in Padang, West Sumatra, returned home
\nunregistered because the polling officers they visited told them
\nthey were not ready to do business.<\/p>\n
\"How can we accept any registrations, we are not even certain
\nyet on where we should carry out our job, let alone ways to
\nregister,\" Belakang Olo Padang subdistrict head, M. Sidik, said.<\/p>\n
Padang Utara district's secretary Zainal Abidin Azhari also
\nsaid he was confused.<\/p>\n
\"I have contacted the Provincial Elections Committee (PPD I)
\nand the provincial administration's officials in charge of
\nsociopolitical affairs, but they said they also were still
\nwaiting for direction from Jakarta,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The chairman of West Sumatra's PPD I, Adi Bermasa, said the
\ncommittee had yet to set up District Polling Committees (PPKs) in
\nthe province.<\/p>\n
\"We just received some important documents some hours ago. It
\nwould be impractical for us to carry out any registrations
\ntoday,\" he said.<\/p>\n
It was the same story in Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n
While unlike in Padang where people were enthusiastic to
\nregister, people in this sultanate town seemed uneager to do so.
\nBut registrars complained about the same matter.<\/p>\n
\"I and my friends until today still don't know exactly how to
\nproceed with the new system of voter registration,\" said
\nNoorkahfi, chairman of a PPS in Yogyakarta's village of Depok.<\/p>\n
The chairman of the Yogyakarta supervisory committee, Yusuf,
\ntold the Post that he had received complaints from PPS of various
\nsubdistricts in Yogyakarta over the unavailability of forms.<\/p>\n
It was similar in Ujungpandang, the capital of South Sulawesi.<\/p>\n
Residents in Mamajang, Makassar and Panakukang who visited the
\nlocal subdistrict offices seemingly wanted to find out how to
\nregister and where they should vote in June.<\/p>\n
But no officers in charge of registration were available to
\nanswer their inquiries.<\/p>\n
The chairman of South Sulawesi's PPD I, Muhammad Yunus Tekeng,
\nadmitted that officers had yet to be appointed to do the job.<\/p>\n
He said all they had done so far was set up elections
\ncommittees at the regency level (PPD II), a body which
\nestablishes PPSs and PPKs.<\/p>\n
In Surabaya, thousands of residents were dumbfounded to find
\nno PPSs set up when they went to their subdistrict offices.<\/p>\n
\"Why, how could this be? They said voter registration begins
\ntoday. Even polling committees have not been set up. Why is
\nthis?\" Margono said at the Tambaksari subdistrict office. He
\nfound he was unable to register.<\/p>\n
Commenting on the development, East Java Governor Imam Utomo
\nwas confident that elections in the province would proceed on
\nschedule.<\/p>\n
\"All East Java regions are ready for the general election,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
In West Java's capital of Bandung, voter registration was also
\ndelayed.<\/p>\n
The chairman of West Java's PPD I, Syahrir Ismail, said not
\nall regency PPDs had yet to establish PPSs in their regions.<\/p>\n
\"Voter registration process begins today. Only four regencies
\nare ready,\" he said without elaborating.<\/p>\n
The province has 26 regencies with an expected PPK to number
\n529, and PPS 7,555. There are a total of 26.7 million eligible
\nvoters in the province, the country's largest electoral province.
\nIt is followed by East Java and Central Java.<\/p>\n
A number of people were politely asked to go home by
\nregistration officers, saying that they had no registration
\nforms, stamps and or even enough staff, to start working.<\/p>\n
Even neighborhood chiefs at Pegangsaan subdistrict in Central
\nJakarta said they did not know that voter registration kicked off
\non Monday.<\/p>\n
They cited the absence of information about the schedule.<\/p>\n
One of the chiefs, Ghozali, said: \"I really don't know when
\nthe voter registration will start. The subdistrict head only
\nasked me to get ready.\"<\/p>\n
Head of the Jakarta Provincial Elections Committee Djafar
\nBadjeber attributed the poor preparation to the late dispatch of
\nbooks on technical guidelines by the General Elections
\nCommission.<\/p>\n
About 5.8 million out of 9.7 million residents of Jakarta are
\neligible to vote.<\/p>\n
Chairman of the National Elections Committee (PPI) Jacob
\nTobing acknowledged that some regions would see delayed voter
\nregistration due to the belated arrival of registration
\ndirectives.<\/p>\n
\"(But) PPI will work to the maximum so that all Indonesians
\nwill be able to join the 1999 elections,\" he said in Jakarta.
\n(28\/30\/43\/44\/ind\/nur\/edt\/aan)<\/p>",
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