Election committee rejects Megawati's list of candidates

JAKARTA (JP): The National Election Institute rejected yesterday a list of prospective legislators from the ousted chief of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Officials at the institute refused to even pass it on to their senior supervisors. The officials maintained that they were merely carrying out orders.

"I must be quite frank and say that I am not competent to accept this list," said the institute's public affairs chief, Zumaidy, when meeting with representatives of Megawati's delegates.

"If I did accept it, it would be in violation of my position," he maintained.

Headed by one of Megawati's deputies, Soetardjo Soerjogoeritno, and PDI Secretary General Alex Litaay, a delegation arrived at the National Election Institute office in the afternoon to present a list of legislative candidates to the election board.

The new government-sanctioned chief of the PDI, Soerjadi, along with chiefs from the United Development Party and the ruling Golkar handed in their lists of prospective candidates in the morning in a ceremony attended by four cabinet ministers.

As part of the electoral procedure, the election committee asks each party to make up lists of 850 candidates to represent them in the 500-seat House of Representatives.

The candidates will soon undergo military screening to ensure that they have no past links with the outlawed Indonesian Communist Party.

Megawati was ousted from the leadership chair in a government- backed rebel congress in Medan, North Sumatra, in June, which elected Soerjadi as the new chief.

Megawati has filed a lawsuit contending the legality of the congress.

Soetardjo explained that they had not attended the morning's ceremony so as to avoid any incident with Soerjadi's delegates.

Despite the initial rejection from the institute's officials, Soetardjo persisted in saying that all he asked was for the list to be received and passed on to more competent officials.

Zumaidy, accompanied by the institute's deputy bureau chief of security, R. Soeyadi, then left the room to consult his superiors.

Nevertheless the two returned minutes later and refused to budge from their initial position.

"We cannot accept it, we have tried," said Soeyadi.

He claimed that he called up someone of authority but he refused to say whether it had been Minister of Home Affairs Yogie SM.

"You don't need to know who it was," Soeyadi scoffed when pressed by journalists who were present in the room.

When someone remarked that the officers were neglecting their duty by refusing to accept the list, Soeyadi quickly responded: "We're are not neglecting it, we're just implementors. That's the order given by our superiors."

Soetardjo said the Megawati camp would resort to legal measures. "We are forced to take action. We shall call on everyone throughout Indonesia to sue the various levels of the election committee," he said.

PDI's legal counselor, R.O. Tambunan, said it was the right of Megawati's camp as the legal and rightful board to take such action. "The Indonesian Election Institute which has rejected our list will be sued in court," he asserted.

Alex Litaay revealed that a list of some 750 prospective legislatures had been drawn up.

Apart from Megawati, her husband Taufik Kiemas, brother Guruh Soekarnoputra, legislators Sabam Sirait and Sukowaluyo, and senior journalist Marcel Beding were among those nominated to represent the special province of Jakarta.

None of Megawati's supporters were included in the list presented by Soerjadi's camp earlier in the morning.

Alex Litaay and academic Laksamana Sukardi were nominated to represent West Java. (mds)