'€œThe funds can cover security needs only up to the first round of the presidential election. There is not enough to cover a second round,'€ he said during a meeting at the National Police headquarters in Jakarta on Monday, as quoted by tempo.co.

For election security, Sutarman said the National Police had proposed a budget of Rp 3.5 trillion which was based on budgetary allocations for direct elections of regional heads.

'€œIt was assessed that an ideal budget would be Rp 3.5 trillion,'€ he said.

Previously, the government allocated Rp 1 trillion for election security for the 2014 elections. The National Police later asked the House of Representatives and the Finance Ministry to add Rp 600 billion saying that the allocated budget was not enough. The request was approved.

Describing the problems they faced, Sutarman said that in Aceh the police must provide security at polling stations some of which were located in remote areas. A similar situation also prevails in Papua. With a limited budget, Sutarman said, police officers could maintain guard at polling stations for only three days. High transportation costs, whereby they have to travel using aircraft to reach some remote areas, have made the situation worse.

As a consequence, the police had to make as many cut backs in spending as possible, Sutarman said.

'€œAt the end, we will have to divide equally the funds available and in such a situation, we must foster our nationalist spirit,'€ he added.

With such a limited budget, he hoped that the election would take place in only one round. '€œIf the presidential election must be held in two rounds, there should be more budget allocations,'€ said Sutarman. (idb/ebf)

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