Minister Kumolo Optimistic of Simultaneous regional head Elections Running Peacefully

Jakarta, (Antara)- Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo expressed optimism that the upcoming regional head elections (pilkada) would run peacefully.

"We are being supported by the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs and his staff to ensure that the simultaneous pilkada will run smoothly and peacefully," Minister Kumolo stated while speaking during a discussion on "Pilkada of Integrity" organized by Sinar Harapan daily, here, Wednesday.

The authorities have declared alert status in several regions considered prone to conflicts during the elections.

Coordination with the election executors, the General Election Commission (KPU), and the General Election Supervisory Body (Bawalu) is expected to help minimize potential problems, he noted.

Three days prior to the simultaneous pilkada to be held on December 9, 2015, the home affairs minister will organize a coordination meeting with the political, legal and security minister and his personnel.

The minister is hopeful that maximum security measures would be able to anticipate conflicts among supporters of the candidates.

In the meantime, KPU Chairman Husni Kamil Manik remarked that there are still problems concerning the disbursement of the pilkada budget in some regions.

He pointed out that 13 regions had not yet disbursed over 50 percent of the pilkada budget.

The home affairs minister has called the heads of the 13 regions to discuss the budgeting problem, according to Manik.

Another problem is the involvement of some candidates in legal cases being handled by the Supreme Court (MA), he added.

Bawaslu Chief Muhammad pointed out that his personnel will be stern in dealing with problems concerning candidates that might arise during the pilkada.

He urged the government to encourage the state civilian apparatus to remain neutral during the implementation of pilkada.

Indonesia is gearing up for the first-ever simultaneous pilkada to be held in some 269 regions, or 53 percent of the country's entire regions.

More than 800 pairs of regional head candidates will contest in the pilkada that will elect nine governors and vice governors, 224 district heads and their deputies, and 36 mayors and their deputies.

According to preliminary data provided by the KPU, there will be 1,820,143 first-time voters, accounting for 1.85 percent of the total eligible voters.(*)