KPU cancels four firms' ink contracts
M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta
The General Elections Commission (KPU) severed on Friday contracts with four firms for procuring substandard ink for the July 5 presidential poll.
A KPU member overseeing ink procurement, Valina Singka Subekti, said the commission would also shave 5 percent off the payments for PT Printcolor Indonesia, PT Asgarindo Utama, PT Cipta Tora Utama and PT Benda Utama as a penalty.
"Laboratory tests conducted by the University of Indonesia and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences showed that the ink produced by the firms did not perform according to the agreed standard," Valina said.
According to the contracts, the four companies were also to procure indelible ink for the Sept. 20 election runoff.
Voters and independent polls observers expressed surprise to see the ink used in the presidential election wear off after a short period. The KPU had estimated the ink would last for three days.
Voters' fingers were marked with ink to prevent multiple voting.
Unlike in the April 5 legislative election, the KPU used locally produced ink for the July polls.
KPU deputy secretary-general Sussongko Suhardjo said the punitive measures were the most severe the commission could impose.
"Our agreement with the firms said nothing about what penalties they would face should they violate the contract. Penalties could be imposed in the case of a dispute, and we consider the ink problem a dispute," he said.
He said the commission had taken samples and carried out its own test on the ink before it was distributed to polling stations throughout the country. The test showed the ink was of good quality.
"It was impossible to examine all the ink. Moreover, it was not like conducting a test on ballot boxes, in which we could easily see any defects," he said.
Separately, KPU deputy chairman Ramlan Surbakti said members of the commission had agreed on a design of ballot papers to be used in the election runoff.
The ballot papers will measure 17 cm by 26 cm and bear the pictures of presidential candidates declared eligible to contest the runoff and the KPU logo on the front cover and signatures of polling station heads on the back cover.
The two sets of presidential candidates will have their original ballot number from the July 5 polls on the paper.
Ramlan said the KPU chose the design drawn by state printing company PNRI over two other bidders due to its feasibility.
"Not only is the design easier to puncture, therefore preventing another double-puncture debacle, it is also economical as it requires a smaller size of paper," he said.
He said the KPU would require at least 152,543,922 ballot papers for the runoff, the figure of registered voters for the July 5 polls minus ghost voters.
Printing will start after the Constitutional Court delivers verdicts on presidential poll disputes on Aug. 10 at the latest.
An additional 2.5 percent of ballot papers will be needed as a reserve.
The KPU expects to rehire most of the firms that printed ballot papers for the July 5 poll. "Two or three firms' contracts will not be renewed," Ramlan said.