Government washes its hands of dispute to remove mayor

Government washes its hands of dispute to remove mayor

Debbie A. Lubis and Ainur R. Sophiaan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Surabaya

Instead of offering mediation, the central government sent a
clear message on Wednesday that it was washing its hands of the
controversial dismissal of Surabaya mayor Bambang Dwi Nugroho by
local councillors.

Claiming that Jakarta should not intervene in regional matters
following the implementation of regional autonomy, Minister of
Home Affairs Hari Sabarno said he would leave the dispute with
the governor.

"I leave the matter with the governor to encourage warring
parties to understand regional autonomy. It is impossible for the
ministry to tackle the problems facing 370 regencies and
mayoralties across the country," he said on the sidelines of a
national meeting organized by the Ministry of Health.

He added that the discord could have been addressed if the
conflicting parties refrained from showing arrogance and
exercising excessive power.

Hari further said that he had received a report from Surabaya
councillors detailing the process of the vote of nonconfidence
against Bambang.

"I received the report this morning and immediately asked the
East Java governor to set up an independent team to probe the
case," he said.

The City Council decided to dismiss Bambang early this month
after he failed to appear and present his revised budget
accountability report for the 2001 fiscal year.

But the central government, which according to the law is
authorized to appoint and remove local chief executives,
recognizes Bambang as the incumbent mayor.

"Actually, the government, or in this case the Ministry of
Home Affairs, recommends that Bambang stay mayor as long as the
presidential decree stipulating his position remains unchanged.
Based on the law, he is still the legitimate mayor," Hari said.

The minister said that Bambang's removal resulted from an
absence of a ruling on political ethics in the relationship
between the legislative council and regional administrations.

He said that the ruling would stipulate the extent of the
council's authority in proposing for a mayor's removal or
election.

"We should consider the public's interests if the council
exercises its right every month or every year to fire a mayor,"
he said.

The council fully supported Bambang's rise to power just one-
and-a-half months ago. Bambang took over from Sunarto
Sumoprawiro, who was dismissed by the same councillors in January
because of poor health and performance. Bambang, the deputy mayor
under Sunarto, was formally sworn in as the new mayor in June.

Hari suggested changes to several articles of Law No. 25/1999
on regional autonomy, which requires the local administration to
present an annual progress report before the council. He said the
ruling had triggered a rift between the executive and legislative
institutions.

"Referring to this case, I believe that it occurred due to a
misinterpretation of these articles. So to avoid further
problems, I think we must reevaluate these articles," Hari said.

Meanwhile, a reconciliatory meeting between Bambang and the
councillors in Surabaya on Wednesday failed to materialize.

The much-awaited meeting was arranged by the mayor at his
official residence at Jl. Walikota Mustajab No. 61.

Councillors from the National Awakening Party, Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle and the United factions did not turn
up, and the council's speaker, M. Basuki, was away in Jakarta.

Only high-ranking city officials and security officers
attended the coffee morning.

"Not to be prejudiced, but this meeting was aimed at fostering
a mutual understanding that we have missed for long," Bambang
commented on the absence of the councillors.