In a statement here on Monday, Syamsuddin pointed out that during the candidate registration process last week, several candidates had violated health protocols by organizing activities attended by crowds of their supporters.
The lawmaker lauded the Ministry of Home Affairs for issuing a warning to candidates found violating health protocols.
"I laud the Ministry of Home Affairs for reprimanding regional head election candidates, who had gathered crowds during the 2020 Pilkada registration process," he affirmed.
Syamsuddin was vociferous in pointing out that the candidate registration period last week had failed to align with the government's efforts to thwart the spread of COVID-19 and prevent new clusters from arising owing to the regional head elections.
"I urge election organizers and law enforcement officials to take precautionary measures over face-to-face meetings during the campaign," he emphasized.
Syamsuddin believes this resulted in crowding that ran counter to the campaign rules set by the KPU during the campaigning period for candidate pairs and supervision of the implementation of health protocols.
The DPR deputy speaker urged election organizers to enforce stringent sanctions on those failing to comply with the outlined rules to have a deterrent effect on prospective candidates failing to prevent crowds during the upcoming campaign period.
The Golkar Party politician encouraged the government and KPU to continually appeal to all candidates to understand and abide by the KPU-set rules pertaining to organizing the 2020 Pilkada amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Do not allow fresh COVID-19 cases to occur during the election process since the safety and health of citizens are the top priority," he added. Related news: Lest local elections lead to new COVID-19 clusters: MPR Chairman
Related news: Indonesian govt enforces stricter discipline on health protocols
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Imam B, Fardah
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
