Military faction takes back seat in MPR election

JAKARTA (JP): After chalking up an easy victory for its nominee for City Council speaker last week, the military/police faction said on Wednesday it would take a passive role in the election of city representatives for the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).

Councilor Col. Gafar Malik said the nine-member military faction would support whoever was the best of the candidates nominated by the 10 other factions.

"We will vote for the best candidate," said Gafar, who is also deputy chairman of the faction.

The 85-member council will meet either on Friday or Monday to elect the city's five representatives to the Assembly.

Gafar said his faction initially planned to nominate former city governor Surjadi Soedirdja as a city representative to the Assembly. "But we canceled the plan after learning that Surjadi preferred to keep out of politics."

He denied speculation that the decision was part of an exchange deal for the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) to provide 20 of its 30 votes to the military faction's winning candidate, Maj. Gen. Edy Waluyo, during the election of the City Council speaker last week.

"It has nothing to do with PDI Perjuangan. We have no such deal with the party," he said.

Gafar also said it was untrue that the military faction would support a candidate from the Golkar Party faction, Sjah Manaf, who is currently a city representative in the Assembly.

Edy Waluyo earlier denied the military faction struck a deal with PDI Perjuangan.

PDI Perjuangan's councilor Tarmidi Suhardjo has repeatedly stated that the decision to shift the party faction's 20 votes was part of a strategy to secure one additional seat in the Assembly, which is expected to be provided by the military faction.

Tarmidi said on Monday that his faction would nominate two party executives for the Assembly's regional representative faction. "One of our nominees is Hobes Sinaga."

Sources said PDI Perjuangan would also nominate a retired brigadier general which the military councilors would vote for in the election.

No PDI Perjuangan councilors were available for comment on Wednesday.

The council's internal regulations stipulate that each party faction is allowed to nominate a maximum of five candidates for the city representatives.

Based on preliminary calculations, PDI Perjuangan, with its 30 council seats, would receive two seats in the Assembly, with the military, the United Development Party (PPP) and the National Mandate Party (PAN) factions each gaining one seat.

Secretary of the PAN faction M. Syamsuardi Botan said on Wednesday that his faction would nominate party executive Zaenuddin Aziz, who is a Betawi (native Jakartan), for the Assembly seat.

"It is aimed at accommodating the interests of the Betawi. None of our 13 councilors are Betawi," Syamsuardi said.

PPP councilor Djafar Badjeber said on Wednesday his faction would nominate the party's West Jakarta chapter chairman Achmad Suaidy to represent the city in the Assembly. (jun)