PDI-P pins poor showing in Jakarta on Governor Sutiyoso

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Executives of the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) have laid some of the blame for the party's disappointing showing in the city during the April 5 elections on Governor Sutiyoso's aggressive evictions of squatters.

"We told the Governor to stop the evictions. But he did not listen ... that is why we think that his actions partly contributed to our loss of voters," Supangat, a Jakarta city councillor from the PDI-P, said during a media conference on Tuesday.

Also attending the conference were the heads of 46 of the party's subdistrict chapters across the city. They were discussing why the party was outpolled in the capital by the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Democratic Party.

PDI-P Jakarta had predicted it would lose at least 50,000 votes due either to the loss of resident status among party supporters or a loss of sympathy for the party, which received the largest number of votes in the 1999 elections.

Made Purnama, head of the party's subdistrict chapter in Senen, Central Jakarta, questioned Sutiyoso's promise during the gubernatorial election to woo voters for the PDI-P.

"Sutiyoso promised to help increase the number of votes for the PDI-P by up to 40 percent in this election in exchange for our full support when he was contesting the gubernatorial election in 2002. So, what did we get?" Made said.

He said that at the polling station in Gondangdia, Central Jakarta, where Sutiyoso and PDI-P leader President Megawati Soekarnoputri voted, the party did not win the majority of votes.

In throwing their weight behind Sutiyoso in the gubernatorial election, the PDI-P withdrew its support for one of its own members, Tarmidi Soehardjo, the City Council deputy chairman at the time.

Tarmidi was expelled from the party when he insisted on challenging Sutiyoso, ignoring an order from Megawati to drop out of the race.

Sutiyoso said earlier that he had no comment on the PDI-P's failure to win the election in the city.

He said he did not support any political parties, as his job was to ensure elections in the city took place without incident.

When asked about the possibility of the PKS winning the polls in Jakarta, Sutiyoso said he had "no problems with that", playing down the fact that the party's faction in the City Council often opposed his policies.

"I do not mind any party taking a critical stance against me as long as it is based on hard facts," Sutiyoso said.