Golkar supporters top traffic violations
UJUNGPANDANG, South Sulawesi (JP): The police have ticketed 317 election rally revelers for traffic violations, most of them from the ruling political group Golkar.
Chief of Ujungpandang city police Col. Mochammad Darus said yesterday that 197 Golkar supporters would go to court for various traffic law offenses they committed on their way back from a rally.
Supporters of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and the United Development Party (PPP), who rallied on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively, shared second place with 60 tickets.
Darus said that most of the Golkar supporters, as well as their PDI and PPP counterparts, were found guilty for not wearing helmets and packing motorcycles with more than two passengers.
Apart from the booking, the police detained more than 100 motorcycles and cars.
Darus said that the vehicles would be kept at police headquarters for between one and two months. "The length of stay will depend on the motorist's violation," he said.
Police in the South Sulawesi capital imposed stricter policies earlier this week after learning that many election rally revelers initiated street rallies and thus broke the law.
Provincial leadership of the three political contestants approved the police move.
Many of the rally attendants looked unprepared for the strict measures imposed by the police. They just followed when police surrounded them and brought them in groups to police headquarters.
In yesterday's rally at Karebosi field, Minister of Finance Mar'ie Muhammad, in his capacity as a Golkar senior functionary, told 5,000 people joining the gathering that they carried the mission to maintain the party's grip on the province.
"Don't talk and make too many comments. Let's promise to win the general election for Golkar," Mar'ie said in his brief speech.
Hasan Walinono, a senior official at the Ministry of Education and Culture, Linda Gumelar, House legislator and wife of Sulawesi military commander Maj. Gen. Agum Gumelar, as well as Jusuf Kalla, renowned businessperson raised in the province, were other campaigners at the rally.
As soon as Mar'ie completed his speech, a group of Golkar supporters tried to flee for a street rally. Police foiled their attempt, however.
Earlier that day, Governor HZB Palaguna in his capacity as chairman of the Indonesian Election Committee's South Sulawesi office, accompanied by Agum, observed an indoor rally at Kemanunggalan ABRI-Rakyat hall. No less than 1,500 people were present.
In another Golkar rally in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan, the party's patron Sarwono Kusumaatmadja claimed that Golkar swept the previous five general elections due to its key role in the national development program.
"The growing public support for Golkar suggests (support for) its successful development program," he was quoted by Antara as saying.
Sarwono, the State Minister of Environment, spoke only for five minutes before leaving for Buntok, South Barito regency, for an indoor rally. (30/31/37/amd)