Golkar to punish dissenting councillors<\/p>\n
Haidir Anwar Tanjung, The Jakarta Post, Pekanbaru, Riau<\/p>\n
The Golkar Party faction of the Riau provincial council divulged
\non Friday that some of its councillors had defied the orders of
\nthe party's bosses to vote for losing gubernatorial candidate
\nSaleh Djasit.<\/p>\n
In fact, in the recent Riau gubernatorial election, the
\ncouncillors voted for Saleh's rivals which resulted in his
\nembarrassing defeat, a top Golkar councillor said.<\/p>\n
The revelation came just one day after the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party of Struggle faction (PDI Perjuangan)
\nacknowledged on Thursday that it had suffered a similar blow.<\/p>\n
Djohar Firdaus, the chairman of the Golkar party faction at
\nthe provincial level, said that the faction would find out who
\nhad defied the orders and severely punish them.<\/p>\n
\"They can be fired immediately from being Golkar councillors,
\nor they will be barred from being nominated as Golkar legislative
\ncandidates in the upcoming 2004 general election,\" Djohar told
\nThe Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
As previously reported, Saleh Djasit and Chaidir -- who were
\nrunning on the Golkar ticket in the election on Wednesday to win
\nRiau's governorship and deputy governorship -- failed to make it
\ntheir day.<\/p>\n
They only received 19 votes, despite the total 29 votes they
\ncould have garnered from both Golkar and PDI Perjuangan factions.
\nGolkar faction holds the majority on the Riau legislative council
\nwith 15 seats, while PDI Perjuangan comes in second with 14
\nseats.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Saleh and Suryadi Khusaini, who were running on the
\nPDI Perjuangan ticket, only got two votes.<\/p>\n
PDI Perjuangan said that only two, out of the 14 councillors,
\nhad voted for Saleh and Suryadi, a result which prompted party
\nnational leader Roy B.B. Janis to threaten to dismiss the
\nremaining 12 PDI Perjuangan councillors.<\/p>\n
The deserting councillors from Golkar and PDI Perjuangan
\napparently shifted their votes to the winning pair in the
\nelection, Rusli Zainal and Wan Abubakar, who were nominated by
\nthe United Development Party (PPP). The pair received 34 out of
\nthe total 52 votes.<\/p>\n
Djohar confirmed that several Golkar councillors had indeed
\nshifted their votes to the winning pair.<\/p>\n
\"We have consulted with the leaders of other factions,
\nincluding PDI Perjuangan, and we have again simulated the
\nelection outcomes. From these, we are able to easily conclude
\nthat some of our councillors have become traitors,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Djohar said that he would immediately hold an internal
\nevaluation over the defeat.<\/p>\n
Djohar added that the defeat had disappointed Golkar Party
\nchairman Akbar Tandjung. Akbar, through his lieutenant Rambe
\nKamarulzaman, told members of the Golkar faction in Riau that the
\ncouncillors had betrayed him.<\/p>\n
The councillors met with Akbar in Jakarta recently. In the
\nmeeting they had said that they were ready to vote for Saleh and
\nChaidir.<\/p>\n
\"But, they voted for the rival camp, Rusli and Wan Abubakar,\"
\nDjohar quoted Rambe as saying.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/golkar-to-punish-dissenting-councillors-1447893297",
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