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Police to go all out to secure simultaneous regional elections: Tito
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Security talks — National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian (right) talks with Indonesian Military commander Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo prior to a limited Cabinet meeting at the Presidential Office in Jakarta on Jan. 17. (Antara/Yudhi Mahatma)
N
ational Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian has instructed police personnel at all levels to make concerted efforts to secure regional elections that will be held simultaneously across the country on Feb. 15.
“We will go all out to secure the elections. There will be 70,000 police officers deployed but the number may change depending on the situation in certain regions,” Tito said during a national leaders’ meeting (Rapimnas) in Jakarta on Wednesday.
The police chief said he had ordered regional police heads to take comprehensive measures, including calculating the number of personnel needed, to ensure security in their respective regions, particularly conflict-prone areas.
“I will give authority to each regional police chief to take their own security measures in safeguarding elections in their respective areas. […] If a riot happens, I will just need to replace the chief,” Tito said.
Last year, the Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) released an election vulnerability index to identify regions prone to electoral fraud and conflicts, with Aceh, Banten and West Papua topping the list.
In the Feb. 15 regional elections, eligible voters in seven provinces, 76 regencies and 18 municipalities will elect local leaders. (ebf)
