Major reshuffle to clean up police force: President

SEOUL, South Korea (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid said the recent major reshuffle of high and middle-ranking officers, including the Jakarta Police chief, was part of the government's efforts to clean up the law enforcement agency.

"Pak Mulyono is a very strict and honest gentleman and the new East Java police chief is too," Abdurrahman said, referring to the new Jakarta and East Java Police chiefs Brig. Gen. Mulyono Sulaiman and Brig. Gen. Sutanto.

According to the President, who is in Seoul to attend the Summit for Asian-European leaders, their predecessors, Brig. Gen. Nurfaizi and Brig. Gen. Da'i Bachtiar, were replaced because they were "unwilling to uphold the law".

"Officers, who seem to be reluctant, will now be directly replaced. We hope that these kinds of measures will bring about substantial change in our country," Abdurrahman said, but did not elaborate further.

Mulyono, who is currently the logistics deputy assistant at the National Police Headquarters, and Sutanto, who is the North Sumatra Police chief, were stated in a decree signed by the National Police Chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro as replacements to Jakarta Police chief Nurfaizi and East Java Police chief Da'i.

The reshuffling of the two top positions in the police force was part of a major reorganization which included the appointment of Insp. Gen. Pandji Atmasudirdja as National Police deputy chief, a post which has been vacant since Sept. 23 following the promotion of Bimantoro.

The changes also included the replacement of chiefs and deputy chiefs of several provinces, including South Sumatra, East Kalimantan, and Irian Jaya.

Nurfaizi is to be assigned to head the National Police Training Center in Jakarta, while Da'i is to be appointed as governor of the National Police Academy in Semarang, Central Java.

Shortly after the announcement on Tuesday, National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Saleh Saaf denied that the reshuffle was hasty and that Nurfaizi was being replaced due to the arrest of President Abdurrahman Wahid's former masseur Suwondo, who is a suspect in the multibillion rupiah State Logistics Agency (Bulog) scandal.

Although the swearing-in ceremonies are to be held within two weeks, the appointed officers would take their new posts as of Tuesday. (byg/bsr)