Buleleng regent sanctioned after 45 days of uncertainty
I Wayan Juniartha The Jakarta Post SINGARAJA, Bali
Amid a tight security cordon of some 1,500 police officers, the Buleleng Legislative Council installed on Friday Putu Bagiada and his running mate Gede Wardhana as regent and vice regent of Buleleng regency.
The inauguration ceremony put an end to 45 days of political uncertainty and turmoil, which began on regency election day, May 7, when legislative council speaker Komang Sudharmaja Duniaji refused to accept the result of the election, and froze the whole election process over alleged irregularities.
Sudharmaja, who also ran for the post of Buleleng regent along with running mate Sudiana, and had been fully backed by Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) executives at both provincial and national levels, suffered a tragic and humiliating defeat at the election.
The pair managed to secure only 18 votes, although PDI Perjuangan controls 31 seats on the 45-seat legislative council. Meanwhile, its rival, the Bagiada-Wardhana pair, won 25 votes.
After freezing the election process, Sudharmaja carried out maneuvers apparently designed to eliminate Bagiada's chances of becoming the elected regent, including the revelation that Bagiada was once dismissed from a state-owned bank over alleged credit manipulation. He also tried to have several PDI Perjuangan councillors fired, accusing them of having sided with Bagiada's camp in the election.
However, Friday's council decision to legalize the election result has clearly shown that most council members have already had enough of Sudharmaja's maneuvers and are determined to proceed with the installation ceremony with or without the consent of council Speaker Sudharmaja.
Friday's session, attended by 29 councillors, including 17 from the PDI Perjuangan faction, was chaired by council deputy speaker Widnjana Dangin, as Sudharmaja did not show up at the session.
"The fact that a PDI Perjuangan candidate lost the election is, in my opinion, not surprising, as there hasn't been a unified stance over his (Sudharmaja's) candidacy between party members, either," PDI Perjuangan member Widnjana said after the session.
The division within PDI Perjuangan reflected the growing rift between Sudharmaja and PDI Perjuangan councillors. Rumors were rife that the party's councillors planned to unseat Sudharmaja from the council's leading position.
The situation in and around the Buleleng capital of Singaraja was relatively normal during and after the council session.
"However, we don't want to take any chances. I've ordered my men to stay on alert and we'll continue with security arrangements for several more days, just in case," Buleleng Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. M. Syafei said.