The number of new players on the political scene ahead of the 2014 general elections will be limited to one, as only the National Democrat Party met the official verification requirements, the government announced on Friday.
“Out of the 14 political parties that applied for verification, the only one that qualified was the NasDem Party,” Justice and Human Rights Minister Amir Syamsuddin told a press conference.
The government was supposed to announce the verification results last month. Deputy Minister Denny Indrayana said that since only NasDem qualified at that time, the ministry had given three other parties more time while the other 10 withdrew their bid. “But until the scheduled deadline passed [the three] failed to meet the requirements set by the law,” he said.
One of the three losing out is the Insulinde National Prosperity Party (PKBN), founded by Yenny Wahid, daughter of the late President Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid. The Independent People’s Union (SRI) Party, which earned substantial media coverage after it said it wanted to nominate former Finance Minister and current World Bank managing director Sri Mulyani Indrawati as its presidential candidate, is another.
Full Article: Strict Registration Rules for Elections Ensnare 13 Parties | The Jakarta Globe.