City Council approves gubernatorial candidates

City Council approves gubernatorial candidates

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The City Council approved the names of seven pairs of
gubernatorial and vice gubernatorial candidates at a plenary
session on Monday amid protests by thousands of demonstrators in
front of the Council building on Jl. Kebon Sirih, Central
Jakarta.

Although a number of interruptions came from United
Development Party (PPP) faction councillors during the session,
the 85-member council finally managed to approve the seven pairs
submitted by the 11 factions.

Muhammad Suwardi, deputy chairman of the City Council, who led
the plenary session, said the names of the seven pairs of
candidates would be reported to the President via the Minister of
Home Affairs before the election on Sept. 11, when each
councillor would cast their ballot secretly.

The three strongest pairs are Sutiyoso-Fauzi Bowo, nominated
by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, Golkar Party and
the Unity and Justice Party factions; Tarmidi Suhardjo-Abdillah
Toha, the National Mandate Party faction and Edy Waluyo-Ahmad
Suaidy, nominated by PPP and the Crescent Star Party faction.

PPP councillors tried to protest the change of candidacy of
Fauzi and Abdillah, who were nominated as vice gubernatorial
candidates, even though they had earlier registered as
gubernatorial candidates.

The protest was a token one, however, as the election
procedure does not ban such a change of candidacy.

Meanwhile, two groups of demonstrators from the Betawi
Brotherhood Forum (FBR) and Betawi People's Group (POB) staged a
demonstration outside the council building.

Hundreds of FBR members expressed disappointment over the
absence of former minister for women's affairs Tutty Alawiyah in
the race while POB supporters gave support to the pair of
Sutiyoso-Fauzi Bowo.

Earlier, a number of non-government organizations voiced
strong criticism against the nomination of Sutiyoso, who was
considered to have failed during his five-year term, but on
Monday none of them showed up.