Final vote results not endorsed by all parties

Final vote results not endorsed by all parties

JAKARTA (JP): Five representatives of political parties at the
Jakarta Provincial Elections Committee (PPD I) either refused to
endorse or were absent from the endorsing of the final vote
results in the city on Monday.

Chairman of the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Masyumi
Islamic Political Party (PPIM) Harun Al Rasyid firmly said he
would not sign the results because of allegations of rigging and
fraud.

He based his statement on a sampling survey conducted by a
committee team at 509 out of 10,198 polling places. The survey
concluded that poll data validity was only 37 percent.

"We can say that, based on the survey, the remaining 63
percent of the vote results is haram (forbidden according to
Islamic law), I can't account for it to God and our voters," he
said.

A similar view was shared by Islamic Community Party (PUI)
chairman Tony Brawijaya who said he would wait until there was a
guarantee that the parties' objections (on alleged vote-rigging
and fraud) would really be attached to the results when it was
submitted to the National Elections Committee.

"There is still time, until tomorrow morning, to sign the
results. Our party will first discuss it further," he said.

Besides PPIM and PUI, other parties' representatives which did
not sign the results were from the Democratic People's Party
(PRD), the Indonesian Democrats Alliance Party (PADI) and the
Indonesian Democratic Union Party (PUDI).

However, representatives of the three parties could not be
reached for comment on Monday as they were absent from the
meeting.

The results were also not endorsed by representatives of the
Muslim Community Awakening Party (PKU), the Democratic Catholic
Party (PKD) and the Murba Party because their representatives
were fired by their parties' chairmen due to internal problems,
said committee chairman Djafar Badjeber.

Djafar said he would take the results to the PPI on Tuesday, a
day later than previously scheduled.

He also said PPI had given direction that the Stembus Akkoord,
a mechanism allowing parties to pool their leftover votes to win
remaining seats, should not be applied until problems over
arrangements were solved.

On Saturday, PPD I announced the vote results that the
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle was assured 29 of the 76
city council seats contested followed by the United Development
Party (13 seats), the National Mandate Party (13 seats), Golkar
(seven), the Justice Party (three), the National Awakening Party
(two) and the Crescent Star Party (one).

Through the Stembus Akkord, another three parties -- the
Justice and Unity Party, the United Party and the Indonesian
Unity and Diversity Party -- would each gain one seat.

Total seats at the council is 85, including nine given to the
Indonesian Military.

Comment

Separately, city officials and councilors welcomed the general
election victory of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
(PDI Perjuangan), which grabbed 30 of the 76 seats on offer in
the City Council.

Speaking to The Jakarta Post on Monday, two deputy governors
and two city councilors, however, warned the future councilors
about chronic corruption in the city administration.

They also suggested the new councilors be extra careful in
electing a replacement for current Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso,
whose term is scheduled to end in 2002.

"It's a big responsibility. Councilors will face opportunities
for corruption. They could be offered bribes, in the form of cash
money or future projects," councilor Ali Wongso Sinaga of
Commission D for development affairs said.

Ali said future councilors should have a thorough knowledge of
the administration to allow them to deal with the corruption they
will most likely face.

"If they are thorough, they will know that corruption here is
decades-old and administration officials are professionals in
committing such misdeeds," he said.

"The would-be councilors should also forget about simply
collecting evidence and handing it to the City Inspectorate
Office because nobody in the administration is immune from
corruption."

Ali suggested new councilors provide as much information as
possible to the media.

Meanwhile, deputy governors Abdul Kahfi for administrative
affairs and Fauzie Alvi Yasin for economic and financial affairs
congratulated PDI Perjuangan on its "big win".

"It's a big win. They (PDI Perjuangan) must be happy," Kahfi
said.

"Let's just hope they know what they will be handling in the
near future. Jakarta is not an easy city to run ... they should
know that by now," he said.

According to Fauzie, the new councilors should focus on being
"critical" in order to protect the city budget from "unnecessary
projects".

Councilor Lukman Mokoginta of the Indonesian Democratic Party
(PDI) said he was "quite happy" PDI Perjuangan, which is a
breakaway faction of PDI, won the majority of seats in the
council.

"It's a refreshing change. That's what Indonesians need,"
Lukman, who is rumored to be planning to sever his ties with the
faction he currently leads to join PDI Perjuangan, said.

He suggested future councilors focus on city development,
particularly building low-cost apartment blocks.

"I am referring to development targeted at middle to lower-
class people," he said.(ind/ylt)