"Residents must feel secure and tranquil when they go to the polling stations to cast their ballots and return home. The right to vote must be guaranteed by the constitution and the state must also be involved," Chief of the National Defense Forces (TNI) General Gatot Nurmantyo stated in his directives before 24 thousand police and military personnel in Ancol, North Jakarta, on Wednesday.
When the residents are afraid and do not feel secure, they cannot exercise their rights to vote, which means that the state is not involved, he noted.
"But the state is involved in the runoff of the election by deploying police and military personnel at each polling station across Jakarta," he remarked.
He also assured that Jakarta residents can exercise their rights to vote safely without any pressure.
"The military and police personnel will begin to arrive at each polling station this afternoon/evening," he revealed.
In total, 60 thousand security personnel, consisting of 20 thousand from the Indonesian Police, 15 thousand from the National Defense Forces (TNI), and 25 thousand from the Community Protection Agency (Linmas), will secure the runoff of the Jakarta gubernatorial election.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2017
