Council chairman rejects summons

Sat, 13 May 2000, 00:00 WIB | Source: JP

TANGERANG (JP): Calling the allegations baseless, ousted
chairman of Tangerang Council Gian Sugiharto decided on Friday
not to meet the police summons to testify over his alleged
involvement in a mob attack on the council building on April 24.

"I will not comply with the police's summons as they accuse me
of masterminding the mob attack.

"They cannot put me up as a suspect based on the testimonies
of four Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan)
cadres who have been held in police detention since the
incident," Gian said in his house in Keroncong, Jatiuwung,
Tangerang.

He said the four were practically forced by the police to name
him as a prime suspect.

"Their bodies were full of bruises resulting from the beating
by officers," he said.

"All these (allegations) are a grand scheme to smear PDI
Perjuangan and to bring me down," he added.

Tangerang Police chief Lt. Col. Pudji Hartanto has named Gian
as a suspect in the incident, which led to Gian's dismissal from
his post as council speaker by a group of 35 legislators.

Three of Gian's deputies were also fired in a plenary session
on Monday.

The mob attack took place shortly after Gian's decision to
allow 72 hectares of land in Koang Jaya subdistrict to be
developed into a project to redirect the water from the Ciliwung
and Cisadane rivers, without following council guidelines.

Gian's decision led a majority of councillors to launch a no-
confidence vote against him.

Hundreds of people claiming themselves to be local PDI
Perjuangan supporters ran amok on April 24 during a protest at
the council building. They demanded the resignation of four PDI
Perjuangan councillors, who they said had betrayed their party
because they had voted for a motion of no-confidence against
Gian.

Besides damaging windows and other parts of the council
building, located on busy Jl. Nyimas Melati, the group also beat
councillor and PDI Perjuangan faction chairman Teddy Subrata and
local resident Ahmad Sanusi. (41/edt)

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