Voters lack enthusiasm for polls

Nani Afrida ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sat, 09/13/2008 9:55 AM  |  City

Andi Rohimi, 19, cannot wait to vote in the general election next year. This will be the first time he will cast his ballot and he is excited.

"It'll be a new experience. I can give something to the country and that'll be great," the university student told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Andi is one of the Jakarta residents who welcomes the national election with enthusiasm.

However, many other residents are voicing lukewarm responses to the upcoming national election.

Darmawati is one. The vegetable seller, who trades in Pasar Minggu market in South Jakarta, said she did not care whether her name was on the voter list or not.

"It's better I spend my time earning money for my children. The political parties promised everything during the previous election, but my life is still difficult," the 24-year-old said.

Darmawati added she did not prefer any of the slated party candidates.

"I did like one, but after he was chosen as the leader prices went up and my life got worse than it was," she said.

Like Darmawati, Cici, 40, who works in a private company, said she would not vote in the 2009 election.

"Although my name is on the list, I won't vote. It's a waste of time and useless," said Cici.

Cici believes people who are eager to vote must have connections with political party candidates.

"None of my family is involved in political parties. So I don't need to vote, do I?" said Cici.

According to the Jakarta Elections Commission (KPUD), there are about 6.7 million eligible voters in Jakarta. East Jakarta has 2,014,542 voters; South Jakarta registers 1,527,922; West Jakarta, 1,493,699; North Jakarta, 1,103,685; Central Jakarta, 767,709 voters; and the Thousand Islands regency, 16,153 voters.

Some poll committees (PPS) in several Jakarta subdistricts, however, have not completed their lists of eligible voters. They were supposed to submit their completed lists to the commission on Aug. 27, but some said they would likely miss the deadline.

The PPS in Beji, Depok, in West Java is one such committee. As of Friday, committee members were still checking the list for errors.

"We are working day and night in this small office. I think, it's impossible to finish all the lists on time," said committee head Dahlan Iskandar at his office on Friday.

Beji's PPS has registered about 29,000 eligible voters. Before reporting the list to the commission, they have to confirm whether the voters still live in Beji or have moved to other districts.

Dahlan added his staffers had barely time to breathe after the election of West Java governor last April before starting preparations for the next stint.

Dahlan, who has been working for PPS since 1987, found people's enthusiasm for voting has waned drastically.

"People used to rush to get their names on the list. But today they seem uninterested in taking part.

"It's totally different from before. Maybe people are tired with the fuel price increase," he said.

Jumadi, the PPS head in Srengseng Sawah, South Jakarta faced a similar situation. He had registered about 39,000 eligible voters, but many more are still not on the list.

"Nowadays, unlisted voters just say, *Oh well', and do nothing about it when they find they aren't on the list," Jumadi said.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.