Accept whoever wins poll: Mega

Accept whoever wins poll: Mega

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Indra Harsaputra, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta/Surabaya

Incumbent President Megawati Soekarnoputri has reiterated her
call for a peaceful election and asked the nation to accept
whoever was elected the next president in the vote on Monday.

In a speech on the eve of the final round of presidential
elections on Sunday, Megawati said all Indonesians were obligated
to support the next president.

"Whoever gains the people's trust as president and vice
president in the current election are the country's legitimate
leaders, who must receive our sincere support and acceptance,"
Megawati said.
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She said whatever the result and despite people's different
political affiliations, the election process should not undermine
national unity.

"We have shown the world in the past two elections (this year)
that we can participate in orderly and peaceful polls and there
is no need to have any security concerns," Megawati said.

Indonesia held a legislative election on April 5 and the first
round of presidential polls on July 5.

Megawati's former chief security minister, Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono, and his running mate, Jusuf Kalla, were the top
polling candidates the July 5 election, which was contested by
five pairs of candidates, while Megawati came second.

The incumbent president, paired with non-active Nahdlatul
Ulama (NU) leader Hasyim Muzadi as her running mate, is facing a
tough battle on Monday as her popularity continues to trail
Susilo's.

Along with the official Election Supervisory Committee
(Panwaslu) and independent domestic monitoring teams,
international bodies including one from the European Union and
the Carter Center are observing the poll.

Megawati warned of the possibility of increasing tensions
during vote counting and asked all political, community and
religious leaders to calm their supporters.

Panwaslu officials and political analysts have said political
clashes could occur, particularly in Java where support for
Megawati and Susilo is relatively equal.

On Sunday, poll workers assisted by residents started to
establish polling stations around the country.

In East Java, an important battlefield for the two rivals, a
group of NU clerics issued a religious edict banning abstention
in the election.

One person likely to transgress the edict is influential
former NU leader and president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, who
has publicly stated many times he would abstain from voting in
the runoff.

At the same time, Gus Dur has given his support to his
daughter Zanuba "Yeni" Arifah Chafsoh Rahman who is a member of
Susilo's campaign team. The former president has met separately
with the two candidates several times.

In Pekanbaru, Riau, the eve of election was marked with a
campaign by a group calling for a boycott of the election on
Monday.

In Lhokseumawe, Aceh, currently under a state of civil
emergency, soldiers and police put up checkpoints on roads in and
out of the area and required all travelers to show their identity
cards.

Monday's runoff is Indonesia's first direct presidential
election since it gained independence in 1945.