T

he Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPUD) announced that election paraphernalia for the April 9 general elections had been prepared late last year.

'€œWe have distributed the logistics to every municipality. [In fact] many still have reusable items from previous elections,'€ KPUD head Sumarno told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

He said the reusable items '€” such as ballot boxes and poll booths '€” accounted for 60 percent of the total needs of the election.

Data from the KPUD shows that Jakarta needs 24,110 ballot boxes: 10,007 for South Jakarta, 7,636 for West Jakarta and 6,467 for North Jakarta.

Meanwhile, 45,702 polling booths were needed, comprising 15,036 polling booths for South Jakarta, 14,774 for West Jakarta, 5,294 for North Jakarta and 474 for Central Jakarta.

Sumarno said unlike the aluminum ballot boxes used in previous elections, this year water resistant cardboard boxes would be used as they were cheaper.

'€œA cardboard ballot box costs Rp 24,000 (US$1.97), while an aluminum ballot box can cost Rp 200,000,'€ he said.

Separately, the Central Jakarta KPUD confirmed the arrival of election items to their warehouse.

'€œWe only requested additional polling booths because we have enough logistics. We currently have 6,932 polling booths and 6,079 ballot boxes,'€ Finance and Logistic division head at Central Jakarta KPUD Rudolf Tambunan said on Friday.

He said currently, his office was in the process of removing 2012 gubernatorial election materials from their warehouse.

'€œWe need the space for materials for the upcoming election,'€ he said.

Sumarno said the provincial level KPUD was responsible for procuring some materials such as ballot boxes, poll booths, pens, markers and sharp tools, while the General Election Commission (KPU) would be responsible for other materials such the ballots and ink pads.

The KPU announced Thursday the 11 consortia of printing companies that won the Rp 345 billion tender to print ballots for the legislative election.

Meanwhile, most of the main thoroughfares in the capital on Friday remained relatively free from banners and billboards depicting political parties and legislative candidates. On Jl. Dewi Sartika in East Jakarta, there were only a few flags and banners.

The clear street was not without reason. On Wednesday, the city'€™s Public Order Agency and the Election Supervisory Committee (Bawaslu) confiscated banners and flags that breached campaign regulations.

Bawaslu reported that most were owned by the Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

PDI-P headquarters deputy chairman Prasetyo Edi Marsudi said the party had followed the regulations and had a permit for their flags.