Candidates gear up for June elections

Oyos Saroso H.N. The Jakarta Post/Bandarlampung

Candidates vying for top posts in the direct elections for heads of regional governments in Lampung province are confused over which political party to register with, as each party has its own screening process.

The complicated recruitment process had also motivated the candidates to register with several parties, as there is no guarantee that the party of their choice will accept them as a candidate for the June elections.

Bandarlampung municipal secretary Sjachrazad Z.P., for example, has registered himself with the Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS), the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Democratic Party. Sjachrazad, the younger brother of Lampung Governor Sjachroedin Z.P. is also planning to register with the Golkar Party.

The selection process conducted by political parties, which has been seen by many as reformist and untarnished, has been criticized recently.

The criticism has mainly been aimed at PKS, which has over the past two weeks begun the screening process for the position of Bandarlampung mayor. The selection process is open to non-party candidates. The names of each candidate for mayor and deputy mayor will be placed in the media after they pay a registration fee of Rp 2.5 million (US$280.00). They will then be evaluated by the public and eventually selected by a committee of 2,000 PKS members in an election they call the Grand Election.

Despite giving the impression of being transparent, the procedure has received harsh criticism from various circles.

Former Democratic People's Party (PRD) activist Andi Arief, said that PKS had lied to the public because they had already decided on a candidate from within the party.

"If they already have their own internal candidate, why are they asking for registration fees from outsiders? It's sheer deception. Besides, the ones determining the outcome are the PKS members themselves," said Andi.

Head of the PKS selection committee, Heri Mulyadi, refuted Andi's claim. According to him, the transparent selection process would accommodate the aspirations of the public at large to select the right candidate. Each stage of the recruitment process will be done responsibly, said Heri.

Unlike PKS which requires candidates to pay Rp 2.5 million for the registration fee, the Democratic Party charges Rp 5 million for potential candidates.

According to chairman of the Bandarlampung branch of the Democratic Party, Gafriyanto, the higher registration fee was to discourage people from registering who were not serious about running in the election.

Although a bylaw on the elections is still pending, the Lampung General Elections Commission (KPU) has decided on June 27, 2005, as the date for the direct regental elections in several regencies in Lampung.

Two municipalities and three regencies will elect their respective heads on that day. They are the municipalities of Metro and Bandarlampung, and the regencies of South and East Lampung, and Way Kanan.

The election campaign may show more restraint than the campaigning during the past direct legislative and presidential elections.

In the past elections, legislative candidates and the success teams of presidential candidates distributed cash, banners, posters and calendars. Current candidates are adopting a wait-and-see policy.

Even though banners, posters and the like will still be used, the amount will be far less than the previous elections.

According to the political adviser to one of the candidates running for the post of Bandarlampung mayor, Mahendra Utama, candidates do not wish to spend excessively on such things until they are certain to be named a party candidate. "They also don't want to be cheated by the parties," he said.

Lampung KPU chief Suwondo said that the commission would assist KPU offices in municipalities and regencies to prepare for the direct elections. Voter registration is slated for March next year, and names of candidates must be submitted by respective parties in April, while the campaign period is set for May, 2005.