KPU seeks Rp 3.45 trillion for elections
KPU seeks Rp 3.45 trillion for elections
Kurniawan Hari
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
The General Elections Commission (KPU) reported to the House of
Representatives (DPR) on Tuesday its plan to increase the budget
for general elections in 2004 from Rp 2.9 trillion (US$363
million) to Rp 3.45 trillion (US$431.25 million).
The budget would finance both legislative and presidential
elections. The legislative election is scheduled to take place on
April 5, while the two-phase presidential election would be held
between June and August, 2004.
KPU deputy chairman Ramlan Surbakti said the additional funds
would be used for ballots, ballot boxes, polling station
installations, honorariums for staff, and the dissemination of
information to the public.
Based on Election Law No. 12/2003, the number of voters at
each polling station should not exceed 300 people. With an
estimated 130 million voters, KPU needs to set up more than
438,000 election booths.
The commission estimated that the two-round presidential
elections would cost around Rp 800 billion, while printing
ballots would cost up to Rp 500 billion.
According to Ramlan, each polling station will have five
polling booths to speed up voting.
"We estimate that voting at each polling station will end
within six hours," Ramlan told the press after attending a
closed-door meeting with the House of Representatives's
Commission II for legal and home affairs.
The increase to the election budget was based on the
assumption that 50 parties would contest the general elections.
According to that estimated, the ballot will be five pages
with each page featuring the logos of ten political parties and
names of candidates.
KPU also allocated funds for disseminating information about
the newly-adopted electoral system.
At the national level, KPU allocated Rp 75 billion to educate
people about the system and for the dissemination of information
at the provincial and regental levels KPU allocated Rp 75 billion
and Rp 25 billion respectively.
Ramlan said he hoped the provincial and regional
administrations would help finance the cost of disseminating the
information.
Responding to the demand, deputy chairman of House Commission
II Abdul Rachman Gaffar promised to help KPU get the funding for
the sake of fair elections.
"We of course will ask the budget committee to approve that
proposal. If the elections can not take place due to financial
problems, there will be serious problems," Gaffar added.
The support of the legislators for the election budget was not
without conditions. Gaffar said he demanded KPU officials limit
administrative costs and reduce travel expenses.
He also warned KPU members not to abuse their power and take
part in bidding for projects that supply or print ballots.
Gaffar, a legislator from the Military/Police faction, said
that the budget for security for the general elections had not
been submitted to the House.
The security budget, Gaffar said, will depend on whether the
elections of legislative members and the elections of the
president and vice president are held simultaneously or not.