Bali governor backs away from Buleleng regent election row
I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali
The Balinese administration has yet to declare its official stance on the outcome of the election for Buleleng regent, which saw the dominant Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) faction defeated.
"We are still waiting for an official report from the regency election committee team, before the Balinese administration can take an official stance.
"We have received a written objection to this matter, from the chief of PDI Perjuangan's Bali chapter, Ida Bagus Wesnawa, but we cannot take an official stance yet," Governor Dewa Beratha said on Friday.
"Due to regional autonomy, the entire responsibility for this matter lies with the regency level. Therefore I have no authority to intervene. If this matter is reported to the home ministry, it will be thrown back at me. I leave this matter to the regency level."
Beratha was commenting on the defeat of PDI Perjuangan's Sudharmaja Duniaji and Nyoman Sudiana for the regent and deputy regent posts in the coastal regency of Buleleng, for the 2002- 2007 period.
Sudharmaja, who is speaker of the legislative council, objected to the results of the voting, which saw Putu Bagiada and Gede Wardana of Golkar and National Awakening Party respectively named the winners.
Tension rose following the PDI Perjuangan's defeat in the election on Monday.
Dewa warned that Monday's problems, which arose in the course of the elections of the regents and deputy regents for both Jembrana and Buleleng, must not be repeated again, particularly in the elections of the Gianyar regent and Bali governor, scheduled for August next year.
He said that in a democracy, the winners should reflect the voice of the majority but in the case of the elections for Buleleng and Jembrana regent posts, the voice of the majority had lost.
Meantime, a cafe was vandalized on Wednesday on Jl. Gelatik Gingsir Sukasada in Buleleng.
However, local police insisted that the Sangket Cafe incident was a separate criminal act which had nothing to do with the regency elections. The police added that the cafe was reportedly vandalized by disgruntled employees who were unhappy with the cafe's management.
On Tuesday, Sudharmaja and 26 other PDI Perjuangan councillors declared the election for Buleleng regent and deputy regent results void, but the council's electoral committee ignored Sudharmaja's declaration and continued with the electoral process.
"The results are valid. Our obligation was to conduct an election, and I personally believe that we have fulfilled that obligation in accordance with all regulations and laws. If the council, or a part of the council, questions its validity and refuses to accept it, it is not my problem and neither is it the problem of this committee," the electoral committee's chairman I Nyoman Gede Astawa said.
The electoral committee sealed the voting papers, put them inside a locked white wooden box, which was then kept at the local police station before being sent on Wednesday to the Bali governor's office in Denpasar.
It was a tragic and humiliating defeat for Sudharmaja since his candidacy was openly supported by PDI Perjuangan.
Three members of the party's central executive committee, Mangara Siahaan, Gunawan Wirosaroyo and Gusti Ngurah Sara, attended the election in an apparent show of support for Sudharmaja. Moreover, PDI Perjuangan holds a 31-seat majority in the Buleleng council. A local analyst said the result of the voting reflected the deep rift that currently exists within the local PDI Perjuangan structure.
The election was held under very tight security that involved at least 2,500 security officers, including some 300 officers from the Denpasar-based police elite Mobile Brigade.
Two rows of police personnel guarded the council building, roads were closed, barricades set up and two armored tactical vehicles were seen nearby. Hundreds of pecalang (traditional guards) were also deployed all over Singaraja.