Karanganyar to rehold elections

KARANGANYAR, Central Java: Karanganyar legislative council decided on Saturday to repeat last year's regental elections in Karanganyar due to money politics.

Emerging from the plenary meeting on Saturday at the office of the Karanganyar legislative council, council chairman Sumarso Dhiono said that the decision was taken after an investigation found that the elected regent and deputy regent, Rina Iriani and Sri Sadoyo, were guilty of money politics during the election process.

Rina and Sri were elected as regent and deputy regent of Karanganyar regency on Oct. 23 last year.

"The findings were even endorsed by a letter from the Minister of Home Affairs dated Nov. 11 last year," he said.

It is not known why the Karanganyar legislative council took so long to investigate the elections nor to announce their decision.

The plenary meeting on Saturday was attended by 42 councillors; 30 of them demanded that the elections be repeated. Three councillors were absent from the meeting.

The atmosphere of the meeting became tense after five councillors from the Reform Faction walked out.

The 30 councillors, who were in favor of the reelections, were from Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle factions. The remaining seven councillors, from the Indonesian military and police faction, chose to abstain.

The Karanganyar legislative council is slated to hold another plenary meeting on Wednesday, to arrange the schedule for the upcoming reelections.

The pairs of Gunawan Sukardjo and Dradjad, and Sadewo and Yuliatmono are expected to run in the reelections.

However, Rina Iriani and Sri Sadoyo will be barred from participating. -- Antara