PAN chief faces axe for crime

PALU, Central Kalimantan: Chairman of the National Mandate Party (PAN) in the Central Sulawesi regency of Tolitoli, Mohammad Arief Muluk, is facing the possibility of dismissal after the local district court found him guilty of issuing a fake diploma to one of his students.

Deputy chairman of PAN's provincial chapter Basir Nursin told reporters on Monday that Arief's firing was almost certain for bringing disrepute to the party and the local legislature.

"His misconduct has tarnished the party's image as well as his own. As a councillor he should have been a role model for the people," Basir said.

The Tolitoli District Court sentenced Arief recently to six months' probation for the crime, which surfaced when one of his students was registering to sit for a senior high school final exam.

Arief was the principal of a local Islamic junior high school run by the Muhammadiyah Muslim organization when he issued the fake diploma for his student, who failed to pass the school's final exam several years ago.

"The case has been submitted to the PAN central board of executives," Basir said. (24)