JAKARTA - When Indonesian housewife Suharti was returning home from a shopping trip, a group of political party workers handed her 100,000 rupiah (S$8.60) and a T-shirt – and asked her to vote for their candidate this week.

“They told me to vote for this certain candidate but I still don’t know who I’m going to vote for,” the 53-year-old said.

“Once I’m inside the voting booth, I’ll vote according to what my heart tells me to.”

Voters, candidates and campaign volunteers have said that they saw free goodies and envelopes stuffed with cash being handed out ahead of the Feb 14 presidential, parliamentary and regional polls.

About 205 million Indonesians are registered to vote in the world’s third-biggest democracy, and the country’s election monitoring body Bawaslu has urged people to report any vote-buying.

But corruption remains a problem, and Transparency International in its 2023 report said Indonesia’s anti-graft commission had been “severely disempowered”.

Parliament is widely viewed as one of Indonesia’s most graft-hit institutions, and the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) monitor says at least 56 candidates previously convicted of graft are running for seats in the legislative vote in 2024.

Hundreds of envelopes

One man who gave his name only as Andri said he was asked by several candidates running for a seat in Parliament for help in distributing money and groceries to lure voters.

He said he was approached because of his role in a Jakarta football fan club.

He accepted the task.

“I usually started (distributing money) to people closest to me first, and then to people in my neighbourhood,” the 37-year-old said.

“I distributed hundreds, or even thousands, of envelopes, depending on how much the candidates gave me.”

Despite warnings from official bodies that bribes are illegal, the practice persists.

ICW researcher Seira Tamara said: “It still happens because our regulations provide loopholes and law enforcement is not comprehensive enough.”

Election front runner Prabowo Subianto has openly addressed the issue, urging people to take gifts but to vote for their favourite candidate.

“If somebody promises you money, just accept it, that’s your money, the people’s money. But please vote according to your heart,” he recently told supporters.

Violations start at the recruitment stage, where candidates must spend to earn their candidacy, said Ms Seira.

One woman who ran for a seat in Parliament in 2019 said on condition of anonymity that she spent 250 million rupiah to buy votes, but still lost.

“Now, I am changing my method – I visit houses door-to-door and promote myself and my programmes,” she said.

‘Not effective’

Mr Andri of the football fan club said that out of several candidates he helped in 2019, only one won and entered Parliament.

“It is not effective, in my opinion – definitely not a guarantee you will win,” he said.

“You don’t know who they are going to vote (for) inside the polling booth.”

Regardless, vote-buying and accepting cash both perpetuate corruption, regardless of who wins, with advertising and bribery costs encouraging candidates to return favours once elected.

Ms Seira said: “This is a vicious cycle. The policies they make after... will not be for the public interest, but for the interest of their investors.”

She added that as long as there are people willing to accept the money, vote-buying will persist.

Mr Ukon Furkon Sukanda, a 39-year-old legislative candidate, is optimistic that younger voters will be harder to bribe.

“People who vote in exchange for money will slowly disappear and be replaced,” he said.

“It will become a contest of ideas.” AFP