PDI-P legislators reported to police

TANGERANG: A councillor-ellect from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) in Tangerang regency, Barhum, 38, was reported to Tangerang Police on Monday for allegedly submitting a fake high school diploma for his candidacy.

Barhum was reported by another PDI-P official in Sepatan district Ali Musa, who said Barhum never graduated from SMUN 2 state high school.

The school principal Lily Istifa confirmed that Barhum did not graduate from the school in 1987 as stated in the diploma that he used when registering as a candidate.

Budi Usman, the deputy chairman of the poll monitoring group (Panwaslu) in the regency, said that Panwaslu would again run some checks on the diploma Barhum submitted.

Barhum did not speak directly to the allegations, but said instead that Panwaslu and the electoral commission had cleared him. "I've already passed the verification process held by the General Elections Commission (KPU), Panwaslu and the regency education agency," he argued.

Barhum then announced that he was going to file a police report against his party comrade Ali Musa for defamation. -- JP