By: Rendra Hakim *
Related to the circulation of news about the ballot papers being broken in the picture column of Jokowi’s 01 – Ma’ruf Amin pairs in Malaysia, KPU Chairperson Arief Budiman appealed to the public not to speculate regarding the news. KPU has deployed a team to check the truth in the neighboring country. He also coordinated with the Election Supervisory Body in following up on the ballot findings that were signed. Meanwhile, Arief said, the KPU and Bawaslu had ordered a team from Jakarta to check directly to the scene.
“So please do not draw conclusions on your own, then not polemic, there are events like this,” Arief said.
He said that he had contacted the PPLN Overseas Election Committee in Malaysia to check the location of the incident. That, to ensure the news and find out what really happened.
“Until tonight, everything is still going on the process, because I ask for a detailed report so it needs clarification on a number of things,” he said.
“I want to know where that place is, then how many ballots from the KPU. Then who first discovered the incident and who made the video, then who reported to the Overseas Supervisory Committee, “added Arief.
Chairman of the DPP PSI Tsamara Amany asked the Election Supervisory Body to fully investigate the case of the ballot that was cast in Malaysia. Tsamara believes that the ballot in Malaysia is not related to the incumbent presidential candidate Joko Widodo.
The Chairman of the Kuala Lumpur Panwaslu Yaza Azzahara Ulyana had previously received a complaint regarding the discovery of the ballot that was cast off. There are two locations where the ballots are found. The first location is the Taman Tangkas Bangi 43000 University Kajang, Selangor. In this location, ballots were found in diplomatic bags, black plastic bags and 5 burlap sacks with the posts of Pos Malaysia. A number of Presidential Election ballots were cast off for candidate number 01, while the votes for the legislative election were broken down for Nasdem DPR legislative candidates number 3.
While the second location is the Bandar Baru Bangi area, Selangor. The chairman of the Kuala Lumpur Panwaslu said the travel time from the first location to the second location was around 15 minutes. In this location there were also 158 sacks containing ballots. Several ballots for the presidential election were broken down for candidate number 01. For these findings, Bawaslu and KPU will fly to Malaysia to conduct a direct investigation.
But the latest news from the KPU said that it had found a number of peculiarities at the meeting of the ballots cast in Selangor, Malaysia. The KPU will see the ballot directly to confirm the truth.
“Regarding this finding, we still need further clarification, because we have seen it so far from the video,” said KPU Commissioner Hasyim Asyari.
Hasyim revealed the peculiarities in the video that still needed to be explored. First, it is related to the storage of ballots. Abroad, there are three methods of selection, namely elections in foreign polling stations (TPSLN), voting through mobile ballot boxes (KSK), as well as the method of selecting using the post. He said that the ballots for the TPSLN method should still be stored at the Indonesian Embassy located in Kuala Lumpur. Because it will only be used on Sunday, April 14, 2019. Meanwhile, the selection with the KSK method takes place earlier, but the KPU pocketed the data of all voters who used the method.
“The KSK does not mean anonymity. We have a list of KSK voters. So it is already known who the voters who will use their voting rights the KSK method by name already exists, “he said.
Ballots for the postal method have been sent to voters in the period 8-24 March 2019. Some postal ballots are still voters, the rest have been sent back by voters, and are still stored in the PO BOX of the shipping service provider hired by the Election Committee Foreign Affairs (PPLN). After all postal ballots are sent back by the voters, the ballots are then stored in the Republic of Indonesia representative office and the place rented by PPLN with certain conditions. The postal ballot storage area has security standards, and is equipped with CCTV which oversees the place 24 hours a day.
This case has been handled by the KPU and Bawaslu, of course the public can refrain from being provoked and keep taboo with the news.
* The author is an observer of social and political problems