KPU to screen supervisory members

Ramlan Surbakti, the deputy chairman of the General Elections Commission (KPU), said on Friday that the commission would begin the screening process of supervisory committee candidates between April 12 and April 19.

"We have submitted letters to the National Police and the Attorney General's Office, requesting them to nominate their personnel as supervisory committee candidates," he said.

KPU is also selecting election commission members in the country's 30 provinces and over 400 regencies.

The members of the central supervisory committee is to comprise nine representatives taken from the National Police, prosecutors, academicians, members of the press and community members.

Ramlan said each member must be nonpartisan to ensure the independence of the committee, and that all should be given leave of absence from their jobs during their commitment with the committee.

The central supervisory committee will then select members of the supervisory committee at the provincial level, and the provincial level will elect members for regental committee, and so on until the district level.

Election supervisors are responsible for monitoring the election process at every voting booth, including counting the ballots.

The number of supervisory committee members at the provincial level will vary depending on the population of the province. Provinces that have over 10 million people are required to have a seven-member committee, while those with a population of less than 10 million are to have a five-member committee.

The KPU plans to screen and select members of the central supervisory committee on April 19; the provincial on May 13; the regental and municipal on June 5; and the district on June 20. -- JP