Suwarna reelected as E. Kalimantan governor<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The East Kalimantan legislative council reelected on Monday
\ngovernor H. Suwarna and his deputy AF Yurnalis Ngayoh for another
\nfive years.<\/p>\n
Unlike other recent provincial elections which have been
\nmarred by problems, the council voted the pair in with a majority
\n24 out of 44 votes in an uneventful election.<\/p>\n
Rival candidate pairs Awang Faroek and Abd Thalib came in
\nsecond with 13 votes, and Imam Munjiad and Sarkawi were third
\nwith seven votes, Antara reported.<\/p>\n
The three-hour long election began at 10 a.m. with a 30 minute
\nsuspension, as councillors debated whether or not they could
\ncarry cellular phones into the voting booth. They eventually
\ndecided to leave all cellular phones, wallets and loose items
\nlike papers outside the booth.<\/p>\n
In front of the legislative complex, some 8,000 supporters of
\nthe three candidate pairs rallied under tight security. The
\nsupporters dispersed peacefully following the announcement of the
\nelection results.<\/p>\n
Suwarna and Yurnalis were appointed as East Kalimantan
\ngovernor and deputy governor in 1998. Monday's election marked
\nthe first time that the provincial council elected their own
\ngovernor.<\/p>\n
Under the 2001 Autonomy Law, Jakarta has empowered provincial
\nand regental councils to select their own leaders. The central
\ngovernment only approves the election after it has been endorsed
\nby the council.<\/p>\n
Surwana and Yurnalis, however, must first pass a three-day
\nperiod of public scrutiny before the council can endorse their
\nelection.<\/p>\n
The council can annul the results if the public finds fault in
\nthe election process or with the winners' past performance.<\/p>\n
Rival Awang is the former regent of the natural resource-rich
\nEast Kuta regency who resigned to run in the gubernatorial race.<\/p>\n
Government officials must abandon their posts if they decide
\nto run for the governorship as required under Law No. 22\/1999 on
\nregional government.<\/p>\n
His running mate Abdul owns an electronic appliance business
\nin the East Kalimantan provincial capital Samarinda and is a
\nrespected figure at the East Kalimantan branch of the National
\nMandate Party (PAN).<\/p>\n
The pair of Iman and Sarkawie are members of the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and PAN respectively.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/suwarna-reelected-as-e-kalimantan-governor-1447893297",
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