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View all search resultsKampar residents told not to distribute 'sembako' ahead of election
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Officials from the Pekanbaru General Elections Commission drop off ballot papers into ballot boxes in this file photo. (Antara/Rony Muharrman) (Antara/Rony Muharrman)
T
he Kampar Elections Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu Kampar) has called on residents to refrain from distributing staple foods, known as sembako, ahead of the election as such activities may indicate transactional politics.
This call was delivered after the Kampar Integrated Law Enforcement (Gakkumdu) team seized hundreds of sembako packages on Monday, just two days before the election on Wednesday.
Panwaslu Kampar head Martunus Rahmad said sembako packages containing rice, cans of sardines and instant noodles were found at an empty house in Salo district, Kampar regency, on Sunday following a report from a university student.
“After a series of investigations, we found no campaign material at the house or on the packages. The owner of the house has no affiliation with any of the candidates,” said Martunus.
Gakkumdu Kampar has temporarily stored the sembako packages at the Panwaslu Kampar office to prevent any possible misuse.
Martunus said the sembako packages belonged to the house’s tenant, Hasan Basri.
Hasan said he intended to distribute the packages to nearby residents, just like he had done in previous years.
(Read also: Tight race in Jakarta may trigger vote-buying: ICW)
Separately, Kampar Police chief Adj. Comr. Edy Sumardi also told residents and candidates to refrain from distributing anything ahead of voting day.
“Every party has to maintain a peaceful election. Don’t tarnish it by giving away stuff to encourage people to vote for a particular candidate,” Edy said.
