Big names qualify as DPD candidates
Big names qualify as DPD candidates
Bambang Nurbianto
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
The Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPUD) announced some
big names among the 36 candidates that qualified for the Regional
Representatives Council (DPD) for next year's general election.
These included businessman Pontjo Sutowo, former state
minister of the environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, businesswomen
Mooryati Soedibjo and Kemala Motik, politicians Aberson Marle
Sihaloho and Bambang Warih Koesoemo, former ambassador to
Singapore H.B.L. Mantiri and Betawi (native Jakartan) figures
Biem T. Benyamin, son of the late actor Benyamin Sueb, and
chairman of the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) Fadloli El Muhir.
KPUD chairman M. Taufik told a media conference on Thursday
that some of the big names, including Pontjo and Aberson, had
qualified conditionally.
According to Taufik, some people from the Thousand Islands
regency claimed that Pontjo's men had promised to give them rice
and money if they supported the businessman.
As for Aberson, he was unable to show his high school diploma
to KPUD officials during the verification process; however, he
did produce a document saying that he was once registered as a
student at the University of Indonesia (UI).
The information on both candidates was revealed earlier by
Taufik late last month.
Another member of the KPUD, Riza Patria, said that the two
candidates could be scrapped from the list should they be
implicated in "money politics," although they had been declared
as qualified by the General Elections Commission (KPU).
KPUD will report its results on the final verification process
to the KPU later on Thursday for further checking before the
candidates are announced publicly on Dec. 9.
The 36 names on the KPUD list would not automatically be
entered for the general election on April 5, 2004, as the KPU
would make its decision based on a recommendation from the KPUD,
itself determined by significant findings on the candidates.
The 36 candidates have passed the final verification from an
initial 74. The remainder comprise 36 who failed in the earlier
stage of verification while two others withdrew from the race.
The announcement of the candidates had been originally
scheduled for Tuesday but was delayed twice.
Taufik said that most candidates had failed in the factual
verification as people, claimed to be their supporters, denied
their support when asked by KPUD verification team members.
Only four winning candidates from each province will represent
32 provinces in the DPD. They will team up with 550 members of
the House of Representatives to form the People's Consultative
Assembly.
A total 575 people took registration forms from the KPUD but
only 104 returned them.
For the first time in history, citizens from all over the
country will directly elect their DPD candidates in a general
election.