Banyumas regent election annulled<\/p>\n
Agus Maryono, The Jakarta Post, Purwokerto, Central Java<\/p>\n
The Banyumas Legislative Council annulled on Wednesday the
\nresults of last week's election that made Aris Setiono the new
\nregent after allegations emerged that he won the position through
\nvote-buying.<\/p>\n
Following a three-day investigation into the reports by the
\nelection committee, the council ruled the March 19 election as
\nvoid.<\/p>\n
\"If the suspicion of money politics is proven to be right,
\nthen the election of the regent must be declared void,\" said
\nSutikno, a member of the election committee.<\/p>\n
Based on the 1999 Law on regional autonomy, Jakarta has
\ndelegated the elections of governors and regents to the regions.<\/p>\n
The law calls for a second election if the winning governor or
\nregent is proven guilty of vote-buying.<\/p>\n
Aris and his running mate, Imam Durori, should have been sworn
\nin as Banyumas new regent and deputy regent during the council's
\nplenary session on Monday. Both are from the Golkar faction.<\/p>\n
However, council speaker Tri Waluyo Basuki asked the election
\ncommittee to investigate the reports of vote-buying behind
\nSetiono's victory.<\/p>\n
The reports came from the Swara Hati foundation and the
\nBanyumas chapter of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
\n(PDI-Perjuangan).<\/p>\n
Aris and Imam won 28 of the 45 votes in the election, while
\nthe candidates of PDI-Perjuangan and the National Awakening
\nfaction (PKB), won only 17 votes.<\/p>\n
PDI-Perjuangan said its candidates should have won at least 25
\nvotes because the party has 17 seats in the legislature while PKB
\nhas another eight.<\/p>\n
In its report to the council, PDI-Perjuangan said faction
\nmembers Achmad Sudirta and Supadi confessed they accepted Rp 200
\nmillion (about US$22,400) from Aris in return for their votes.<\/p>\n
The two men said a legislator of the Golkar faction had
\noffered them the money the night before the election. Golkar has
\ndenied the allegations.<\/p>\n
Aris and Imam would have been sworn in during Wednesday's
\nspecial plenary session if the committee had not found the
\nreports credible.<\/p>\n
A heated debate broke out when Sudirta and Supadi said they
\nwanted to retract their confessions because they were made
\nunder pressure.<\/p>\n
But legislators dismissed the appeal, as neither of the two
\nmen could explain their claims of being forced to confess.<\/p>\n
PDI Perjuangan won the simple majority in the 1999 general
\nelection but has often been defeated in gubernatorial and regent
\nelections despite its domination in provincial and regency
\nlegislature.<\/p>",
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