Jakarta – More than 23,000 people have signed an online petition launched on Change.org to reject tighter requirements being imposed on independent candidates running for office, like the popular governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, is planning to do.
The petition, "Rejecting the Regional Elections Law Revisions Plan to Tighten the Independent Candidate Requirements," was initiated by netizen Caesar Sutiono.
Several lawmakers at the House of Representatives have proposed to revise the 2015 Regional Elections Law, calling for stricter requirements for independent candidates participating in regional elections.
It is widely believed that the revisions plan is an attempt to block the re-election of Basuki, also known as Ahok, whose hard-line anti-corruption campaign has been ruffling feathers within the establishment.
As of Friday (18/03) afternoon, the petition had been signed by over 23,000 netizens, surpassing its initial target of 15,000 signatures.
The Constitutional Court on Sept. 30 revised a provision in the Regional Elections Law, previously requiring independent candidates to gather at least 7.5 percent support of the population in a given electoral area before they were qualified to run. The court changed the requirement to 7.5 percent of eligible voters, arguing that population figures are merely estimates that can change from time to time.
However, some members of the House of Representatives are seeking to double this figure. In response, many commentators have pointed out that the proposal was made just days after Basuki announced that he would rather run as an independent than lobby for support from political parties, which he accused of setting too many terms and conditions in exchange for their backing.