TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Chairman of the West Java General Elections Supervisory Agency or Bawaslu, Zacky M Zam Zam, confirmed that rigged ballot papers had been found at a polling station (TPS) in Bogor Regency, at TPS 54 in Bojongkulur Village. A viral video was posted showing a ballot paper that had been rigged to vote for Prabowo-Gobran pre-emptively.

"There were indeed ballot papers that have been voted on," he said on Wednesday, Feb. 14.

Zacky said that the rigged ballot papers were found by a voter when they were about to cast their vote. "So it was identified when the voter received the ballot paper and when they entered the voting booth it turned out that it had already been voted," he said.

Two voters who found their ballots had been marked had asked for replacement ballot papers, but the replacement ballot papers had also been voted on. The voting organizing group or KPSS, witnesses, and supervisors then examined the existing ballot papers. In total, eight ballot papers were found to be rigged.

Zacky said that the KPPS officers and witnesses agreed to put the voted ballots in the damaged ballot category and continue the voting. However, Bawaslu still investigated the case.

"We have dispatched officers to investigate where the rigging occurred, whether it was in the packing process or the folding and sorting process," said Zacky.

A similar viral video is also said to have occurred in Garut. Zacky said that an investigation would be carried out to determine the reason behind the rigging. "We will investigate to find out what actually happened," he said.

West Java KPU member Adie Saputro doubted this information, however. He said the ballot papers had already been placed in the box and had been sealed, so they couldn't be rigged.

"I did receive the information, but we saw that the ballot papers had been packed at the regency level, sealed, and sent [to polling stations]. It was impossible for anyone to open them," he said on Wednesday.

AHMAD FIKRI

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