KPU admits to campaign loophole

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta

Presidential and vice presidential candidates contesting the July 5 election will likely have more time for campaigning outside the designated period, as the General Elections Commission (KPU) has remained silent over early campaigns carried out by some candidates.

KPU member Anas Urbaningrum said on Thursday the commission could not act against candidates who had prematurely run ads in electronic and print media as their candidacy had not been made official.

"Early campaigning cannot be considered illegal as the candidates concerned are yet to be declared eligible. The presidential election law only concerns candidates who have been declared eligible," he said.

Anas said candidates who had campaigned early were taking advantage of the absence of regulations.

However, he called on presidential and vice presidential candidates to observe professional standards of conduct and refrain from early self-promotion.

The campaign period runs from June 1 through to June 30.

A number of presidential and vice presidential candidates ran ads in electronic and print media before registering with the KPU.

Some candidates have traveled extensively in the country to gain the support of voters in remote regions.

On Wednesday, some 700 businesspeople attended a gala dinner hosted by Golkar Party presidential candidate Gen. (ret.) Wiranto to raise campaign funds for his presidential bid.

Wiranto reportedly went home with some Rp 4 billion (US$450,000) after wooing his guests in song.

The Election Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu) has reported numerous violations of the election regulations, including early campaigning ahead of the April 5 legislative election.

A number of legislative candidates stood trial for early campaigning, but most were handed lenient sentences.

Earlier in the day, Panwaslu deputy chairman Saut Sirait urged the KPU to issue a ruling to regulate presidential campaigns so that candidates could no longer exploit the legal loopholes.

Saut said that if the commission was unable to punish the defiant candidates, it could at least reprimand them.

"We can't take legal action against the candidates ourselves, as the KPU has that authority," he said after a committee meeting with National Awakening Party (PKB) co-founder Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, who filed a complaint against the KPU over what he called a discriminatory ruling.

He said that if the KPU did not act against the unruly candidates, the voters would have to decide for themselves whether the candidate's campaigns had been ethical.