Golkar happy for with new converts

JAKARTA (JP): The city chapter of Golkar was elated yesterday. Even though Golkar's victory was hardly breaking news, local executives saw each development of tallying across the city's 43 districts as a telling sign of their efforts, or lack of it.

Out of the 7.45 million voters in the city, preliminary results as of 2 p.m. yesterday showed 2.8 million voted for Golkar, 2.1 million for the United Development Party (PPP) and only 100,020 for the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).

Opponents had been concerned about Golkar's financial power and their domination of bureaucracy from neighborhoods on up. Their ability to provide thousands of free identity cards to people, had been interpreted by PPP and PDI as a ploy to win more votes.

Nevertheless, Golkar's interpretation -- naturally denying any links to vote grabbing -- may provide some insight.

Nitra Arsyad, a city Golkar executive in charge of analyzing the electorate, sounded happy with at least two districts switching to Golkar. His observations late yesterday were based on reports from local Golkar executives, but he declined to give any figures as they were not official.

At least two strongholds of the other contestants, he said, have become Golkar converts: Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, where PPP won in previous elections; and Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, formerly a PDI base.

Tanah Abang's outcome was surprising because of a riot in which residents, including street vendors, burned down a local district office on Jan. 27. Tanah Abang had been a PPP stronghold since 1977, he said.

"We lost three (of seven) subdistricts," he said.

Nitra said Golkar improved "communications" through informal leaders in both areas.

In Kwitang, Central Jakarta, he said, Golkar had a marked increase in votes. "Previously we lacked touch with the local Betawi (Jakarta native) community," he said. Golkar's strategy of placing more candidates of Betawi origin may have won support.

In Mampang, South Jakarta, an area hit hard by campaign riots, PPP prevailed. Nitra attributed this to the remaining influence of local landlords of Betawi origin linked to Nahdhatul Ulama.

Nitra says Golkar's victory in other riot-hit areas proves predictions of a conservative reaction to the United Development Party.

He said tallies dominated by Golkar in Cawang, Klender and Bidara Cina "reflect housewives' desires to have more security" in the area, which was ravaged by violence during campaigning.

Support for Golkar in Condet, East Jakarta, he said, "is consistent with the rejection of Megawati's office there." PDI's congressionally elected leader Megawati Soekarnoputri had her home-turned-office closed down by the East Jakarta mayoralty, on grounds that it was a residential area.

Another area where Golkar votes drastically decreased, he said, was the North Jakarta subdistricts of Pluit in Penjaringan, and Kalibaru in Cilincing.

Chinese-Indonesian residents in North Jakarta housing estates likely voted for Golkar, he said, but the large portion of slum residents "may have been disgruntled by the river improvement program".

Yesterday Lukman F. Mokoginta, PDI's city chapter chairman, was unavailable for comment.

PPP

The chairman of the city's chapter of PPP, Rusdi Hamka, said Golkar's victory in the city was "extraordinary".

"We also received many votes, but they won't mean much," he said.

The stakes for City Council were only 60 out of 75 seats; ABRI members will be appointed for the remaining 15.

"I'm very disappointed," Rusdi said.

"We were doing so well (in supporter turnout in campaigns) and our votes increased, but now we'll only get a few seats."

There were many incidents of "dishonesty", Rusdi said.

He said the United Development Party has found cases of civil servants voting twice.

"Another example," he said, "is that witnesses had difficulties in receiving signed minutes of the voting." (anr/ste)