North Sulawesi election committee votes to rehold polls
North Sulawesi election committee votes to rehold polls
JAKARTA (JP): The North Sulawesi provincial election committee decided on Saturday to rehold the polls on the grounds that the June 7 general election was marred by vote buying and intimidation by officials from the government and Golkar Party.
The dramatic decision came in a tense meeting when the majority of the committee's members -- consisting of representatives of the 48 parties contesting the polls and the government -- voted for repolling.
Golkar and government representatives objected to the motion but were forced to accede to the majority vote, Antara reported.
Provincial election committee chairman F. Sumampouw said he hoped the National Election Committee in Jakarta would endorse the wish of the majority in North Sulawesi to allow the vote to be rescheduled soon.
Golkar, which reportedly received strong backing from the local government bureaucracy, is ahead in the provisional vote tabulation.
It has been accused of vote buying and using government and military officials in its campaign. Critics cite the numerous bureaucrats and military officers on its list of legislative candidates.
Abdullah, a government representative on the committee, acknowledged that cases of rigging may have occurred, but believed they were blown out of proportion.
"I wish the decision was not based solely on individual or party's individual interests," he said. "Everybody should have been prudent."
During the meeting, about 200 supporters from different political parties staged a noisy protest outside the building and another 600 held a demonstration outside the governor's office. They supported the restaging of the polls.
The demand also was endorsed by 18 of the 39 political parties with chapters in North Sulawesi.
Meanwhile, two districts in Central Java and West Sumatra also called for the vote to be repeated due to alleged vote rigging by Golkar and government officials.
In the Central Java district of Suwowono near Semarang, the demand was voiced by the National Awakening Party (PKB), National Mandate Party (PAN) and Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
Activists of the three parties claimed that Golkar distributed leaflets on June 6, the eve of the polls, instructing people to vote for the party.
The leaflets also carried Golkar's promise of cheap loans for farmers who voted for the party, they added.
Central Java election supervisory committee deputy chief Novel Ali said he would look into the report.
In Pasaman district, West Sumatra, 15 political parties also requested the local election committee repeat the polls, alleging that Golkar contravened the electoral laws.
Secretary of the West Sumatra provincial election committee Dasman Lanin told Antara the demand would likely be met but only in polling places where rigging was proven to have occurred.
In their complaints to the committee, the 15 parties claimed that Golkar used district chiefs, village chiefs and civilian guards (hansip) to help in its campaign.
Several Golkar legislative candidates distributed liquor in Pinagar village ahead of election day, ballot boxes were opened without witnesses and village chiefs received Rp 100,000 each from Golkar, they alleged.
Complainants included PAN, PDI-P, PKB, the United Development Party (PPP), Justice Party (PK), Justice and Unity Party (PKP) and Crescent Star Party (PBB).
Separately in Jakarta, an alliance of five independent election monitoring committees opposed the National Election Committee's decision to hold the polls in Pidie, North Aceh and East Aceh. The government postponed the June 7 vote in the troubled regencies of Aceh province because of separatist hostilities. The election law allows the postponement to last up to 30 days.
The networks of JAMPPI, JPPR, Unfrel, Walhi and Yapika said in a joint statement on Saturday that it was impossible to hold free and safe polls in the regencies,
"Security personnel are still on guard and patrolling the regencies, shooting with rebels is ongoing and 91,000 Acehnese who have sought refuge from intimidation have yet to return," the statement said.
The election monitoring committees were not prepared, they said, indicated by the request to have 1,000 students of Muslim boarding schools replace them. The students rejected the request.
The poll networks pledged cooperation with the National Elections Committee if it was committed to carrying out free and fair elections in the three regencies. But they urged the committee to directly assess the situation in the regencies before proceeding with the vote. (pan/har/rms)