Rival E. Java PDI leaders sacked, third man named<\/p>\n
SURABAYA (JP): Soerjadi, the new chairman of the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party (PDI), resolved a leadership conflict in the
\nparty's East Java chapter by dumping two rivals for the
\nchairmanship and installing his own man instead.<\/p>\n
A meeting of 37 local branches held at the Surabaya Airport
\nHotel here yesterday agreed to appoint Dimmy Haryanto, one of
\nSoerjadi's deputies, as chairman of the new provincial chapter.
\nThe two politicians claiming the post for the past two years were
\nLatief Pudjosakti and Soetjipto.<\/p>\n
Dimmy was elected by a selection committee of three: Soerjadi,
\nDimmy himself, and Latief Pudjosakti.<\/p>\n
A well-informed source told The Jakarta Post that the
\nselection was a mere formality as a decision to make Dimmy head
\nwas reached earlier during a limited meeting of the PDI executive
\nboard on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The executive board was represented by secretary-general Buttu
\nHutapea, Dimmy and fellow deputies Markus Wauran and Budi
\nHardjono. The local branches in East Java were represented in the
\nmeeting by Mentik Budiwiyono from Surabaya, Trimono Wahyu Sutomo
\nfrom Mojokerto and Sani Setiadi of Tulungagung.<\/p>\n
The leadership conflict in PDI's East Java chapter has
\ndragged on for two years. Soetjipto is backed by the deposed PDI
\nchief, Megawati Soekarnoputri, while Latief Pudjosakti is a self-
\nstyled leader who had been enjoying the support of East Java
\nGovernor Basofi Soedirman. Soerjadi, however, reportedly cannot
\nstand Latief, who once helped topple him in the 1993 congress
\nwhich elected Megawati.<\/p>\n
Following his election to the PDI helm in June at the
\ngovernment-backed dissident congress in Medan, North Sumatra,
\nSoerjadi appointed Dimmy as caretaker of the party chapter.<\/p>\n
Yesterday's meeting was opened by Soerjadi and also attended
\nby the chief of the provincial administration's sociopolitical
\nbureau, S. Setiawan.<\/p>\n
The deliberations proceeded smoothly as the 146 politicians
\nrepresenting the 37 branches all supported Soerjadi. No Megawati
\nbackers, including Soetjipto, were invited to the meeting.<\/p>\n
Protest<\/p>\n
At midday, around 1,000 Megawati supporters came and staged a
\ndemonstration outside the tightly-guarded hotel. The group
\ndistributed pamphlets condemning and blaming Soerjadi for the
\nJuly 27 riots, which erupted after his men took over the party
\nheadquarters in Jakarta from Megawati's supporters.<\/p>\n
The protesters also said the congress in Medan was a violation
\nof the party's constitution and therefore not valid.<\/p>\n
The protesters tried to get past the cordon of security
\nofficers but failed. They left but not before ripping a number of
\nPDI flags off their poles along Jl. Juanda.<\/p>\n
After his inauguration, Dimmy told reporters that he plans to
\n\"consolidate\" the party chapter and negotiate with the branches
\nstill opposed to Soerjadi in Bangkalan, Kediri and Malang.<\/p>\n
\"We'll convince them. If they still refuse, then what can we
\ndo? We'll go ahead and establish the chapter's board (leaving
\nthem unrepresented),\" he said.<\/p>\n
Dimmy also promised to seek Soetjipto's cooperation. \"I'll do
\nmy best to include those who have been rejecting the Medan
\ncongress,\" he said. \"I can't force them to join us, but this is
\nimportant for the party because the general elections are
\napproaching.\"<\/p>\n
Governor Basofi expressed relief over the development. \"I
\nrecognize Dimmy's leadership,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The East Java chapter had been told to solve its conflict by
\nSept. 6. The region's electoral board is scheduled to meet on
\nSept. 10 to receive the lists of candidates from the three
\npolitical groupings contesting the general elections next year.
\n(15\/swe)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/rival-e-java-pdi-leaders-sacked-third-man-named-1447893297",
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