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KPU opts to elect chief without new member
Acting chairman: General Elections Commission (KPU) leaders Arief Budiman (left to right), Ida Budhiati, Sigit Pamungkas, Hadar Nafis Gumay, Juri Ardiantoro and Ferry Kurnia Rizkiyansyah pose for a photograph after meeting in Jakarta Tuesday
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span class="inline inline-center">Acting chairman: General Elections Commission (KPU) leaders Arief Budiman (left to right), Ida Budhiati, Sigit Pamungkas, Hadar Nafis Gumay, Juri Ardiantoro and Ferry Kurnia Rizkiyansyah pose for a photograph after meeting in Jakarta Tuesday. Hadar was elected acting chairman to replace Husni Kamil Manik, who died on July 7.(JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
Only seven months away from the next simultaneous regional elections, the current members of the nation’s elections committee have decided to elect a new chairman immediately.
The General Elections Commission (KPU) lost a member and a chairman after the sudden passing of Husni Kamil Manik on the second day of Idul Fitri celebration this year.
The 40-year-old who successfully led the commission during the 2014 general elections and the first simultaneous local elections in December died after suffering from complications resulting from diabetes and an acute infection.
The remaining six KPU members appointed on Tuesday Hadar Nafis Gumay as acting chairman until they choose a permanent chairman next Monday.
The committee would not wait for a designated member, Hasyim Asyari, to be officially installed for the election of a new chief.
“We actually don’t have to wait, because the six members already fulfill the quorum. The election of the permanent chairman is based on our needs. We predict that next week, the position will be more crucial to ease our duties,” Hadar told The Jakarta Post over the phone.
He further explained that appointing a new chairman was urgent as there were different authorities between an acting and permanent chairman.
Signing off on KPU regulation revisions and the commission’s budget are some of the responsibilities of the definitive chairman that he cited as an example.
The committee said it would soon inform President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo about the decision.
The House of Representatives interviewed 14 final candidates for KPU member positions, in 2012. Hasyim was ranked 8th, and according to the law, he would automatically fill the slot.
If the government officiates him as a new KPU member, he and the existing members will serve for less than a year as the current KPU committee is slated to end its tenure next year.
House of Representatives Commission II overseeing home affairs supported the KPU’s decision to immediately elect a new chief as the 2017 simultaneous regional elections are getting closer.
Arteria Dahlan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said it would also be OK if there were only six members because the tenure of all commissioners would end in eight months.
“Having six commissioners won’t disrupt the KPU’s performance,” Arteria said.
Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem) executive director Titi Anggraini, also urged the KPU to take quick action, including appointing a new permanent chairman, regardless of the number of commissioners as long as the quorum was fulfilled, noting the time constraints to prepare for the upcoming elections.
“They are already mature and experienced in deciding what is best for the commission, therefore, such fears regarding the voting mechanism will not become a major issue,” she said. (fac)
