Double voter sentenced to six months in jail

Ni Komang Erviani ,  Contributor ,  Denpasar   |  Tue, 04/28/2009 12:54 PM  |  The Archipelago

The Denpasar District Court on Monday sentenced local resident I Ketut Rambug to six months in prison and fined him Rp 6 million for voting twice in the April 9 legislative elections.

"Evidence and witness testimonies have confirmed the defendant's guilt and offense. However, the court sentences the defendant to the minimum prison sentence because he has been very polite throughout the trial," said presiding judge Daniel Palitin. Rambug was charged with violating Article 290 of the 2008 general election law, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of 18 years in prison and a fine up to Rp 18 million. Prosecutor Deny Iswanto, however, had only sought a 6-month sentence for Rambug.

The defendant had been registered as a voter at polling station I in Dama hamlet, but had also received a C4 form (an official invitation to vote) from polling station II in Dawas hamlet.

On polling day, Rambug went to the Dawas polling station first, where he handed over the C4 form, registered himself and later cast his ballot. Leaving the polling station, he deliberately skipped out on dipping his finger into the ink container.

He then went to the Dama polling station, where officials allowed him vote after they saw no ink stain to indicate he had already voted.

"There was no ink mark on his fingers," Dama polling station head Gede Ariawan testified during the trial. However, a resident became suspicious of Rambug and immediately notified the Dawas polling station head, Putra Santosa. Santosa then contacted Ariawan and verified the information. They later informed the Badung Elections Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu), which then handed the case over to the local police. Provincial Panwaslu head Wayan Juana said he was satisfied with the verdict.

"In our opinion, the sentence and fine handed down by the judges are quite sufficient," he said.

He added there were two more cases still awaiting trial.

"In the election we found as many as 119 administrative offenses and 20 criminal offenses. However, only a handful of them could be handed over to the court," he said.

Lack of witnesses is the main obstacle, he added.

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