KPU rejects additional seats for Council

JAKARTA: The General Elections Commission (KPU) rejected on Friday the City Council's demand for an increase in the number of seats in the local legislature from 75 to 100 for the next election on April 5.

KPU deputy chairman Ramlan Surbakti said that the decision was final and was based on the results of the recent voter registration drive.

"We made the decision after considering the outcome of the voter registration process. It won't be changed," he said.

There are about 8.6 million voters registered in Jakarta. Law No. 12/2003 on General Elections provides that a province whose population is between seven and nine million should only have 75 seats on its legislative council.

Agung Imam Soemanto of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) said that Jakarta should be treated differently from other provinces as it was the country's capital and faced more complex problems.

He said that Jakarta also had to accommodate up to 14 million people per day, referring to the commuters who flock to the city every day from its hinterland.

Currently, there are 85 seats on the City Council. -- Antara