E. Nusa Tenggara legislators elect Tallo as governor

E. Nusa Tenggara legislators elect Tallo as governor

Yemris Fointuna and Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Kupang/Medan

Piet A. Tallo and Frans Lebu Raya were elected as the East Nusa
Tenggara governor and deputy governor for the 2003-2008 period in
the provincial capital of Kupang on Thursday.

Nominated by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI
Perjuangan), Tallo and Frans only just defeated Viktor B.
Laiskodak and Simon Hayon of the coalition faction by 28 votes to
27.

Golkar nominees Esthon Foenay and Gaspar Parang Ehok had been
already ejected from the contest in an earlier session as they
only garnered 10 out of a total of 55 votes. Tallo and Frans took
26 votes while Viktor and Simon won 16 votes in this session.
Three votes were considered invalid.

The election was chaired by the East Nusa Tenggara council
speaker Daniel Woda Palle.

Hundreds of supporters from the three factions' candidates
gathered at the council offices while waiting for the result.

A total of 38 councillors from Golkar and the PDI Perjuangan
were put up in star-rated hotels from Monday "to make
consolidation and communications easier". Eleven councillors from
the coalition faction and six from the Indonesian Military/Police
faction rejected the offer.

Golkar Party regional coordinator Marzuki Darusman suddenly
left the plenary hall after seeing that the party's nominees had
been defeated in the earlier session.

Head of the provincial Golkar Party Daniel Woda Palle called
on the public to accept the result.

"We all must accept the election result and it's better to
avoid any conflicts in society," he said.

The council will submit Tallo's and Frans' names to the
Ministry of Home Affairs to be approved before they are
inaugurated by the minister.

In Medan, the North Sumatra Police declared on Thursday deputy
governor-elect Rudolf Mazuoka Pardede innocent on allegations
that he had submitted fake high school diplomas in order to run
for the second position in the province.

Chief of Detectives Sr. Comr. Satria Hari Prasetya said that
the conclusion was made based on his team's investigation into a
junior high school in Tanjungpinang, Riau, and a senior high
school in Sukabumi, West Java.

Pardede was installed on Monday along with governor-elect T.
Rizal Nurdin by Home Minister Hari Sabarno, despite the
allegation, as the minister had pointedly stated that the
investigation into Pardede must go on.

BPK Penabur Christian high school principal Martha
Christiawati had sent a letter dated May 28 to the North Sumatra
Council and the Ministry of Home Affairs, saying that Pardede had
been enrolled at the school.

But Satria said that Martha was under pressure when writing
the letter, but he declined to elaborate on the matter.

"The case against Rudolf Pardede is dismissed. He is innocent.
The police are now focusing on an investigation into those who
pressured Martha when she was drafting the letter," he said after
meeting Pardede at his new office.

Satria rejected speculations that the meeting was to report
the investigation's result, saying that it was "only to discuss
golf".

Chairman of the council's Golkar Party faction Marzuki said
that the police could not declare Pardede innocent.

"Only a court of law has the legal authority to declare
Pardede innocent," he told The Jakarta Post by phone.

Marzuki also refuted Satria's statement that Martha wrote her
letter under pressure.

"We have a witness from the Sukabumi education agency who saw
Martha writing the letter. This would have been impossible, if
she was writing under pressure," he said.