NGOs to challenge election of S. Sulawesi Governor Amin

NGOs to challenge election of S. Sulawesi Governor Amin

Jupriadi, The Jakarta Post, Makassar, South Sulawesi

A coalition of non-governmental organizations said on Tuesday
they would challenge the validity of a presidential decree
appointing a Golkar executive as South Sulawesi's new governor.

Amin Syam and Syahrul Yasin Limpo were sworn in respectively
as governor and deputy governor of South Sulawesi on Monday,
after beating two other pairs of candidates: HM Aksa Mahmud-Malik
Hambali and Nurdin Halid-Iskandar Mandji.

"We're consulting members in the coalition, but our purpose is
clear: to challenge the validity (of the decree) at the
administrative court," said Abraham Samad, the spokesman for the
Coalition for the Supervision of Gubernatorial Succession (KPSG).

KPSG comprises several NGOs, among them the local chapter of
the Association of Independent Journalists (AJI) and the
Ujungpandang Legal Aid Foundation (LBH).

The coalition claims to have collected evidence that Amin
bribed members of the provincial legislative council to win the
election.

The coalition has submitted the evidence to the police and has
published some of the material in the local media.

"It's up to the police and the public to respond to the new
governor and these allegations," Abraham said earlier.

Governor Amin has denied any wrongdoing and has said he is
ready to be investigated by the police.

Abraham said the election was invalid because the candidates
had not been cleared of the corruption charges against them
before taking part in the polls.

During a meeting between the South Sulawesi legislative
council and the Ministry of Home Affairs, it was decided that
three of the candidates, including Amin, must first be cleared by
the Supreme Court to take part in the gubernatorial election.

However, the election was held without the candidates
receiving the Supreme Court's clearance, Abraham said.

"The letter from the Supreme Court did not come but the
election was still held. So (the election) is legally flawed ...
that is the grounds on which our lawsuit will be based," he said.

A member of the coalition, Syamsuddin, said bribery had
tainted Amin and a number of other gubernatorial candidates.

He said members of Amin's campaign team held meetings with
several councillors in Jakarta and in Makassar.

Following these meetings, a number of the councillors went to
Singapore using "facilities from the candidate", Syamsuddin said.

"We strongly suspect that the 2002 gubernatorial election
process, involving the candidate on the one hand and members of
the South Sulawesi legislative council on the other, meets the
criteria outlined in law number 11 on corruption," he said,
citing articles 2 and 3 of the law on bribery.

Responding to these claims, home affairs minister Hari Sabarno
has said the election was legal.

Since regional autonomy took effect in 2001, a number of
provinces have encountered problems with their governors facing
opposition either from the public or from the local legislative
council.

The recently sworn-in governor of Southeast Sulawesi, Ali
Mase, is facing legal charges over his alleged involvement in
bribery during the gubernatorial election last December.

His swearing-in ceremony was attended by Golkar chairman Akbar
Tandjung, who was sentenced to three years in prison for misusing
state funds. His sentence was upheld last week by the High Court.