Factions want immediate election of new chairman
Factions want immediate election of new chairman
Ahmad Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
City Council factions said on Friday the council should elect
a new chairman soon, following the decision by outgoing Jakarta
Military commander Maj. Gen. Bibit Waluyo to replace military
faction member and council chairman Maj. Gen. Edy Waluyo with
Col. Dody Sudarno.
"The council should soon hold a plenary session to elect a new
chairman, since Dody has just replaced Edy as a member of the
Indonesian Military/police faction," United Development Party
faction chairman Chudlary Syafei Hadzami said.
The timing of Edy's replacement appears a bit odd, as the
official order was signed by Bibit on Wednesday, the day before
he handed over his post as Jakarta Military commander to Maj.
Gen. Ahmad Yahya. Bibit was promoted to lieutenant general and
appointed commander of the Army Strategic Reserves Command
(Kostrad).
Chudlary, who is also the a deputy chairman of the council,
hoped a new council chairman could be elected before the
gubernatorial election scheduled for Sept. 17.
He said a new chairman was necessary because the council was
still deliberating several proposed bills and taking care of
other important matters.
"There should not be a vacancy in the position because we are
still dealing with important work," Chudlary said.
The chairman of the Crescent and Star Party faction, Syarifien
Maloko, agreed with Chudlary.
"We hope the council secretary will soon inform us about the
appointment letter and process it," Syarifien, who is also the
deputy chairman of the council's Commission A for legal and
administrative affairs, said.
According to procedures, the appointment letter must first be
submitted to the Ministry of Home Affairs through the city
administration.
The council can elect a new chairman after the ministry
approves the replacement of Edy, who had earlier registered as a
candidate for governor.
According to instructions from the chief of the Indonesian
Military (TNI), a member of the TNI should retire if he or she is
registered as a gubernatorial candidate. Edy will reach
retirement age next year.
Observers generally agree that the candidacy of Edy, who was
seen as a strong rival to incumbent Governor Sutiyoso, has been
weakened by the loss of his post as council chairman.
Sutiyoso, who is seeking a second five-year term as governor,
reportedly made moves to block Edy's candidacy from the time he
announced his intentions through a letter seeking the approval of
the Jakarta Military commander.
Dody was the chief of the City Social and Political Affairs
Office two years ago, before the office was changed into the City
National Unity Office and he was replaced by a civilian, Effendy
Anas.