Fear of delay to elections looms
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Amien Rais joined on Thursday those expressing concern over a possible delay to the elections following the ballot box tender fiasco.
Amien said the country's democracy was in danger if the General Elections Commission (KPU) failed to work in a professional manner in preparing for the elections.
"A delay will disrupt the whole process of the elections," he said before the launch of a new book compiling his jokes.
He said the KPU was responsible for the logistics of setting up polling stations across the country on schedule.
The nation will elect members of legislative bodies on April 5 and the president on July 5. If a second round of voting is needed in the presidential election, this will take place on Sept. 20.
Amien said if the KPU was unable to establish polling stations in all areas, the elections should be delayed until the polls can take place simultaneously nationwide.
He was responding to concerns raised by legislators from the House of Representatives over the ability of the KPU to organize the elections on schedule, given the fact that many of the planned 565,000 polling stations had not yet received ballot papers or ballot boxes. The KPU has set a March 5 deadline for the distribution of these items.
The KPU canceled the Rp 311 billion contract of PT Survindo to manufacture 2.19 million ballot boxes for the elections, after the company failed to live up to the contract. The commission has appointed PT Tjakrindo Mas and PT Almas, which finished second and third behind Survindo in the tender, to supply the ballot boxes.
House legislators have demanded the KPU sue PT Survindo for its failure to honor its contract, but fell short of pushing for an inquiry into irregularities in the tender process.
Muslim scholar Muslim Abdurrahman also expressed his fear the KPU would fail to organize elections on time.
"This will be the most complicated elections in our history. Unfortunately, the KPU members are not professional," he said.
Muslim pointed out that the KPU had not completed the most important part of the elections preparation, namely the distribution of ballot papers and ballot boxes.
"We will hold the elections in the next few weeks but the preparations are not even finished," he said.
Similar concerns were voiced by the Government Watch (Gowa), which urged the House to begin preparing contingency plans.
"The failure of the House to supervise the KPU could lead to a delay of the elections," Gowa coordinator Farid Faqih said in a statement.
Apart from the ballot boxes, the KPU must also provide nine other items for the elections: ballot papers, voter cards, vote tally forms, ink, computers, operators, training, information dissemination and cargo services.
Amien suggested the KPU not insist on the use of aluminum ballot boxes for the elections if this would only disrupt the poll preparations.
Amien pointed out that during the country's first general election in 1955, the ballot boxes were made of hard paper.
"And we know it was a democratic election," he said.
KPU member Mulyana W, Kusumah has said the KPU was considering using wooden ballot boxes.