Analysts urge election delays in all regions
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The central government is being urged to delay local elections as most regions appear to be unprepared for the polls and existing regulations contain many legal loopholes, which are feared may spell chaos during the elections.
Former state minister of regional autonomy Ryaas Rasyid said the election of governors, mayors and regents, scheduled to start in June nationwide, would not give a boost to democracy because the central government was allowed to intervene in the polls.
The elections would instead be a setback for democracy as the regions were ill prepared to hold the events, he added.
"It would be better for the government to delay the elections without setting a deadline because each region has its own specific problems. Let the regions determine their own schedules to hold the elections," Ryaas told The Jakarta Post over the weekend.
Earlier last week, the government issued a regulation in lieu of law in response to the Constitutional Court's verdict that annulled several articles of Law No. 32/2004 on regional administrations.
The new ruling allows for possible delays in direct elections in certain regions due to security disturbances and natural disasters.
"We can't pick certain schedules to determine whether the regions can go ahead with the elections, because each region has its own specific problems. In Poso (Central Sulawesi), for instance, the elections may not be held within a year following a series of violent clashes.
"While in Aceh and Nias, the elections probably won't take place within the next five to six years," Ryaas said, referring to the Dec. 26 tsunami in Aceh and the powerful earthquake that struck Nias on March 28.
Ryaas said that apart from security and social concerns, the government should seriously consider other factors, including the late disbursement of funds and logistical materials for the elections, as strong reasons to postpone the polls.
A similar call was made by Indra J. Piliang, a researcher with the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He said the local elections should be delayed until the many legal loopholes in the existing regulations were addressed.
Indra asserted that the Election Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu), which is supposed to be an independent body, could not be without bias as it must report to the local legislative councils that consist of members of political parties.
He called the planned direct elections (Pilkada) "the central government's political program for regions instead of supporting the spirit of democracy".
Indra referred to the establishment of the Pilkada desk at the Ministry of Home Affairs, whose main tasks are similar to those of the General Elections Commission (KPU).
The desk will undoubtedly meddle in the local direct elections, he added. "The project does not promote democracy as it shows a centralistic approach."
The first ever direct elections will replace many local administration heads -- governors, mayors and regents who have ended or will end their five-year terms this year.
The government has allocated Rp 1.25 trillion (US$135.87 million) from the state budget for the local elections nationwide.
A rigorous debate, however, is continuing between the government and the House of Representatives over the budget. Lawmakers disagree with the proposed spending on information campaigns about the elections directed at the public ahead of the polls.
Ryaas said many regions may decide to delay their elections due to financial problems, as the House will likely approve the disbursement of the election funds some time in June.
"The government has asked the regions to finance the election preparations at the earliest, while waiting for financial support from the central government. Of course, this will only create more financial problems in the future," he said.