Voters question ID cards use in local election<\/p>\n
Indra Harsaputra, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya<\/p>\n
Objections have been expressed by prospective voters to the
\nrequirement for them to present local identity cards to vote in
\nthe upcoming direct election of regional heads in East Java.<\/p>\n
Rudi, who lives in Surabaya but hails from Sidoarjo, responded
\nto the news that to vote he must hold a local identity card with
\nconfusion.<\/p>\n
\"I have two identity cards, one for Surabaya and the other for
\nSidoarjo,\" he told The Jakarta Post recently.<\/p>\n
He said the card that was issued in Sidoarjo, his latest place
\nof domicile, is valid. But, he is also registered as a Wisma
\nMenanggal, Surabaya resident, though he had requested last year
\nthat the card be revoked.<\/p>\n
He obtained the Sidoarjo identity card through the services of
\na middleman for Rp 300,000 (US$33), despite the fact that only Rp
\n5,000 is required for such a service by the Population
\nRegistration Office in Sidoarjo.<\/p>\n
He was registered as a Sidoarjo resident and issued with a
\ncard within a day. Without the middleman's services the process
\ncould have taken weeks.<\/p>\n
\"If the regulation on the use of ID cards prevails, I can cast
\nmy vote in two places,\" he said, adding that he could also sell
\nhis vote to one of the election candidates.<\/p>\n
Harun, a Mojokerto student who lives in Rungkut, Surabaya,
\nsaid having begun the complicated procedure of getting an ID card
\nissued, he would rather not vote than see it through to the end.
\nPaying Rp 300,000 to avoid the hassle did not appeal to him
\neither.<\/p>\n
First, he had to get a letter from the police saying he has no
\ncriminal record and a second letter from his village
\nadministrative office.<\/p>\n
After obtaining the letter, he returned to Surabaya because,
\naccording to the Mojokerto village administration, the letter
\ncould be used to prove that he had once stayed in Mojokerto.<\/p>\n
However, in Surabaya, the letter was considered insufficient
\ndocumentation for him to be issued with an ID card and a letter
\nfrom his previous village administration was requested.<\/p>\n
This proved to be another obstacle, though, as his previous ID
\ncard from Mojokerto was revoked two years ago.<\/p>\n
\"I tried to deal with the problem at the village
\nadministrative office at my place of residence, but I was led on
\na wild goose chase. The rules are not clear,\" Harun said.<\/p>\n
He said that as the government was asking voters to present
\nlocal ID cards, it must make the application process for ID cards
\nfaster and less expensive.<\/p>\n
East Java administration official Chusnul Arifin said the
\nadministration was taking steps to expedite the process of ID
\ncard issuance and has conducted a census to prevent people from
\nhaving two ID cards.<\/p>\n
The East Java General Elections Commission expects to receive
\ndata from the census by Feb. 28.<\/p>\n
Asked about the possibility of manipulation during the data
\nentry process, Chusnul claimed \"the public will be invited to
\nmonitor the process, so I think that can be avoided\".<\/p>\n
\"The decision on ID cards should not be contested anymore
\nbecause it has been stipulated in Law No. 6\/2005 on the direct
\nelection of regional heads,\" she said.<\/p>\n
She added that under the law, a prospective voter can vote in
\nthe region where their ID card was issued, even if they retain a
\nseasonal ID card (Kipem),\" said Chusnul.<\/p>",
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