Late ballot counting forces KPU to change schedule
A. Junaidi, Jakarta
The General Elections Commission (KPU) has decided to delay the registration of presidential and vice presidential candidates for the upcoming election due to delays in counting ballots in the legislative election.
KPU working group chairman in charge of the July 5 election Anas Urbaningrum said that all presidential and vice presidential aspirants had to register with the commission between May 6 and May 12. The commission had originally scheduled the registration period for May 1 through May 7.
Anas admitted that the delay could create problems with the distribution of election materials.
"Other schedules like the presidential campaign cannot be changed as they are set out in the elections law. The logistics division has therefore to work hard to meet the deadline," Anas told a media conference at the KPU office.
According to Anas, the change was made as the KPU would probably complete the count for the April legislative election on May 5, within 30 days of the election, as stipulated in the elections law.
The KPU, which came under fire for alleged widespread violations in the April 5 election, had intended to announce the final results of the legislative election on April 28, but due to slow delivery of the voting tallies from regental General Election Commissions (KPUDs), this was delayed.
Anas revealed that the commission would verify the data and requirements submitted by political parties on their presidential and vice presidential candidates from May 7 through May 13 and notify parties of the verification results from May 9 through May 15.
"If candidates fail the verification, we shall give the political parties a chance to propose new candidates. That is why we are giving new candidates the opportunity to undergo medical examination until May 22," Anas said.
He said the KPU had yet to receive the results of the health examination of four presidential and vice presidential candidates.
Golkar Party presidential candidate Gen. (ret) Wiranto underwent the mandatory medical check on Wednesday, with the Democratic Party's candidates Gen. (ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Jusuf Kalla, and the National Awakening Party (PKB)'s candidate Abdurrahman Wahid on Thursday.
Other candidates -- President Megawati Soekarnoputri, National Mandate Party (PAN) chairman Amien Rais, and possibly Siswono Yudohusodo -- are expected to undergo the test between May 10 and May 13.
Executive director of the Center for Electoral Reform (Cetro) Smita Notosusanto said the changes to and violations of deadlines reflected poorly on the KPU.
"It shows that the KPU is not professional; it underestimated the problems," said Smita, urging the commission to prepare for the worst.
She warned that logistical problems such as late distribution of ballot papers and boxes, and late counting of ballot papers in the legislative election might threaten to disrupt the country's first-ever direct presidential election on July 5.
Presidential and vice presidential registration timetable
----------------------------------------------------------------- Date Agenda ----------------------------------------------------------------- May 6-12: Registration of candidates May 7-13: Data verification May 9-15: Announcement of verification results May 10-22: Improvement and registration of new candidates May 22 : May 23 reverification May 24 : Announcement of presidential and vice
presidential candidates May 25 Taking numbers of candidate pairs