Almost all Jakarta DPD candidates have submitted fake supporter IDs
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPUD) announced on Thursday that nearly all 73 candidates for the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) had submitted supporter ID cards that had been faked.
KPUD chairman M. Taufik said that the finding was based on the factual verification result of people whose photocopied ID cards had been enclosed with candidacy registration forms submitted by candidates.
"Around 60 percent of the samples that we checked denied giving support to certain DPD candidates," he told the media at City Hall.
KPUD has taken a 10 percent sample of submitted ID cards for verification. Each candidate must enclose at least 3,000 photocopied ID cards from supporters.
Last week, KPUD officers visited people whose ID cards were submitted to check if they were genuine supporters of the candidates.
The procedure stipulates that candidates still have until Saturday to submit copies of their supporters' ID cards to replace the fake ones.
Taufik said that the second factual verification would take place within the next fortnight and the final list of candidates would be announced next month.
On the basis of the verification, KPUD also made allegations of bribery and counterfeiting of school diplomas.
Taufik said that KPUD officers discovered that a team seeking support for businessman Pontjo Sutowo had promised money and rice to people who submitted copies of their ID cards. He said that the people had demanded that KPUD meet the Pontjo team's promises.
He also revealed that legislator Aberson Marle Sihaloho, from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), had failed to produce his high school diploma for KPUD officers.
Neither Pontjo nor Aberson could be reached for comment via their cell phones or fixed line telephones at home.
For the first time, the residents of each province will directly elect their DPD candidates in the April 5 legislative election. Some 120 DPD members from the country's 30 provinces will join with 550 members of the House of Representatives to form the People's Consultative Assembly.
Taufik said that some, whose names had been submitted as supporters of certain candidates, would report the candidates to the city police for misusing their names. He declined to identify the candidates who would be reported to the police.
A total of 575 people took DPD registration forms but only 104 people returned them or fulfilled KPUD requirements. Only 74 candidates met the requirements, but one withdrew.
Other noted figures taking part in the Jakarta DPD race include former environment minister Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, former student activist Hariman Siregar, rally driver Helmy Sungkar and businesspeople Mooryati Soedibyo and Kemala Motik.
Several Betawi (native Jakartan) figures, such as chairman of the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) Fadloli El Muhir, Muslim preacher Soerjani Tohir and Biem T. Benyamin, son of the late actor Benyamin Sueb, have also joined the race.