Kalla to campaign in local elections<\/p>\n
Apriadi Gunawan and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post\/Medan\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Some of the nation's political big guns will be out in force in
\nMedan in the next month, lending their support to candidates
\nrunning for the mayoral elections, with the Golkar Party
\nincumbents looking to get the most heavyweight endorsement.<\/p>\n
Golkar leader and Vice President Jusuf Kalla, Golkar deputy
\nleader and House of Representatives Speaker Agung Laksono, former
\nProsperous Justice Party (PKS) leader and People's Consultative
\nAssembly Speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid, and State Minister of Youth
\nAffairs and Sports Adyaksa Dault, also of PKS, will all be out
\ncampaigning for their respective parties.<\/p>\n
In the mayoral race, which pits the Golkar juggernaut against
\nthe PKS underdogs, Kalla and Agung will be there to support
\nmayoral candidate and incumbent Abdillah and his running mate,
\nRamli; while Hidayat and Adyaksa will line up with the PKB's
\nMaulana Pohan and Sigit Pramono Asri who will contest under the
\nanticorruption, Muslim-based party's banner.<\/p>\n
The official campaign period for the mayoral election in Medan
\nwill begin from June 10 through June 23, with voting held on June
\n27 after a three-day cooling down period.<\/p>\n
The secretary of the campaign team for the Abdillah-Ramli
\npairing, Harmen Ginting, said Kalla and Agung had been registered
\nwith the local election commission and had confirmed their visit
\nto Medan for the campaign.<\/p>\n
\"Kalla and Agung are willing to take part in the campaign
\nbecause of their close personal ties with Abdillah,\" Harmen said,
\nadding that Golkar advisor Surya Paloh and Crescent Star Party
\n(PBR) leader Zainuddin M.Z. would also campaign for the Golkar
\ncandidates.<\/p>\n
The nomination of Abdillah, the incumbent mayor, has also been
\nsupported by seven other parties, he said, including the
\nIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, the United Development
\nParty, the National Mandate Party and the Democrat Party, making
\nhim the most-backed candidate.<\/p>\n
The leader of the Maulana-Sigit success team, Ikrimah Hamidy,
\nexpressed his pleasure at the participation of Hidayat and
\nAdyaksa in the party's mayoral campaign.<\/p>\n
Maulana, the current deputy to Abdilla, also leads the PKS
\nNorth Sumatra provincial chapter.<\/p>\n
The chief of local poll commission for campaign affairs,
\nTaufik Umar Dhani Harahap, confirmed the registration of the
\nstate officials as campaigners for candidates of their respective
\nparties.<\/p>\n
He said the Abdilla-Ramli pairing had registered more than
\n4,300 campaigners while the Maulana-Sigit team had a much smaller
\n67.<\/p>\n
Presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng said no special
\ndecrees would be issued regarding the involvement of state
\nofficials in local elections.<\/p>\n
\"The matter is regulated in Law No. 32\/2004. It just needs to
\nbe enforced,\" Andi said on Friday, referring to articles 79 and
\n80 of the Law No. 32\/2004 on regional administration.<\/p>\n
Article 79 bans government officials, executives of state and
\nlocal government-owned enterprises, law enforcers, military,
\ncivil servants and village heads from showing partiality toward
\nany candidates. However, it does not specifically regulate
\nagainst politicians campaigning who are carrying out party
\ncommitments.<\/p>\n
The government issued a regulation that allows state officials
\nto campaign for parties or candidates during the legislative and
\npresidential elections last year, providing they take leave to
\navoid possible abuses of state assets.<\/p>",
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