Nur Mahmudi may lead Depok after all
Nur Mahmudi may lead Depok after all
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The naming of Muhammad Hassan as a suspect and the recommendation
of the Judicial Commission to punish the judges who ruled on the
Depok election dispute, suggest that Nur Mahmudi Ismail may win
the legal battle against rival Badrul Kamal.
The National Police named Muhammad Hassan, Badrul's spokesman,
a suspect for giving false court testimony during the election
dispute trial at the West Java High Court.
The announcement came just days after the Judicial Commission
called on the Supreme Court to punish the five West Java High
Court judges who declared Badrul winner of the June 26 mayoral
election.
"Nur Mahmudi has a great opportunity to lead Depok. The latest
progress shows that there were serious errors in the trial," said
Institute of Administration Science (IIP) Rector Djohermansyah
Djohan on Wednesday.
The judges annulled in July Nur Mahmudi's initial victory in
the election based on witness testimony, largely from Muhammad
Hassan and Badrul's supporters, who all stated that they were
prevented from casting their votes and that Nur Mahmudi's votes
were inflated.
However, the claims, which judges used to declare Badrul the
winner, were never verified. The judges also apparently ignored
testimony by the Depok General Elections Commission
representatives, who stated that Nur Mahmudi won the election.
Djohan said that the Supreme Court should immediately make a
decision over the dispute to prevent further uncertainty in the
municipality.
"Everything is clear, therefore there is no reason for the
Supreme Court not to make a decision immediately," he told The
Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
Similar opinions were provided by political expert Sri
Ratnawati of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), who
said that all legal issues would be taken into consideration.
She said that the Supreme Court would not take Law No. 32/2005
on regional administration as the only consideration in making a
decision.
"They will consider everything, including the real situation
about what happened during the election," Sri told the Post on
Wednesday.
The Depok General Elections Commission (KPUD Depok) on July 5
announced Nur Mahmudi and running mate Yuyun Wirasaputra as
winners of the June 26 election.
Responding to complaints by Badrul about alleged violations
committed by KPUD Depok in the way it carried out the election,
the West Java High Court on Aug. 4 annulled Nur Mahmudi's victory
and declared Badrul and running mate Syihabuddin Ahmad as the
winners.
KPU Depok protested the court's decision and demanded the
Supreme Court review the verdict.
Meanwhile, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), which nominated
Nur Mahmudi, reported two of Badrul's witnesses to the police and
alleged that they had given false information during the trial.
The party also reported five judges to the Judicial Commission
over their decision.
The Judicial Commission last week demanded that the Supreme
Court suspend the head of the West Java High Court Nana Juwana
for one year. It also called on the Supreme Court to give a stern
warning to the four other judges involved in the case. On
Tuesday, police named Muhammad Hasan a suspect.