House allows

House allows
non politicians
to contest
governorship

Kurniawan Hari
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

Independent candidates should be allowed to contest local
elections provided they have not been affiliated to a political
party for four years, the House of Representatives legislation
committee says.

The proposal was adopted by the committee on Tuesday in
revisions to Law No. 22/1999 on regional administrations.

The draft revision will be sent to a plenary meeting for
further deliberation as will government-sponsored revisions of
the law.

"We hope the amended law will take effect in October next
year, three months after the inauguration of legislative
councils," committee chairman Zein Badjeber said Tuesday.

Zein, of the United Development Party (PPP) faction, said
amendments to the 1999 law aimed to improve the elections of
regents and governors and the composition of the legislative
councils in regencies and provinces.

There have been concerns among the public over practices of
money politics in the election of governors or regents by local
legislative councils in several provinces. The practices
encourage the elected officials to abuse their powers during
their terms in office in order to recover the money they spent to
buy votes.

Some councillors in Central Java and Bali have admitted to
have received money from gubernatorial candidates ahead or after
the elections recently, but no actions have been taken by the
police in response to the confession.

Article 38 of the draft revision states that gubernatorial and
regental candidates and their running mates are elected directly
by the people.

The candidates can be nominated by political parties, a group
of parties or individuals, the article says.

Names of the candidates shall be submitted to the respective
regional general elections commission (KPUD).

Individual candidates must enjoy support from a certain number
of people and will be decided on by the regional general
elections commissions, the draft says.

Individuals contesting the elections must not hold positions
in or have been affiliated to political parties for at least four
years before they register for the election.

Patrialis Akbar of the Reform faction said the draft would
pave the way for an overhaul of the regional administration law,
which many say has given too much power to regional
administrations.

"Other issues, such as borders between regions and relations
between regional administrations and central government will be
discussed later," Patrialis said.

Earlier, Ferry Mursyidan Baldan of Golkar said legislators
were planning to revise all the articles in the law, which was
implemented in 2000.

Direct election for regent and governor emulates the direct
presidential election stipulated in the presidential election law
endorsed by the House in July.

The law, however, does not recognize independent candidates
and allows only a party or a group of parties winning at least
three percent of the vote in the general election to nominate a
presidential candidate.

The landmark presidential election is scheduled to take place
in July next year, with the run-off in September.