PPP protests against election irregularities
JAKARTA (JP): The United Development Party (PPP) strongly protested yesterday the widespread fraud in this year's general election and it was still undecided whether it would accept the final poll result.
In its statement, read by party secretary-general Tosari Widjaya, the Moslem-based political party concluded that this year's election "was generally no better than the previous ones".
"Vote buying, intimidation, mental and physical terror as well as other widespread blatant and shameless violations and fraud have not only challenged our moral ethics of Pancasila democracy, but have also hampered people's process to mature in politics," it stated.
However, the PPP has yet to decide whether to sign the final election results document to be announced June 23 -- as is legally required by the three election contestants -- despite threats of leaders of several chapters to reject the result. PPP's chapters in West Sumatra, South Sulawesi and East Java's Sampang branch have even demanded ballot reruns.
The PPP's chairman, Ismail Hasan Metareum, said after the reading of the party's statement that all the party chapter leaders "have trusted" the PPP central board to make the party's final stance regarding this year's final poll result.
"We have not ruled out the possibility of not signing, but still have not decided," Buya, as Ismail is better known, said. He said the party central board was not given a time limit by its chapter leaders to make the party's much-awaited final stand.
He also declined to say whether a decision would be made before the National Election Committee issues the final result on June 23.
PPP's statement was issued yesterday as the result of its central board's three-day meeting with its chapter leaders from the country's 27 provinces to review the election and hear chapters' reports.
In the PPP statement, numerous allegations of vote rigging and widespread electoral law violations during the 27-day campaign period, the May 29 polling day and ballot counting have been listed.
"We urge the Election Supervision Committee to take strong legal measures against these violations," PPP said.
Intimidation
Violations the PPP recorded include the intimidation and terrorizing of many of its polling scrutinizers, which made them unable to perform their duty on the polling day.
The party has also alleged that eligible high school students had been intimidated to vote for a "certain political party" or else fail their examinations.
There were also controlled and systematic mobilization of -- plus threats imposed on -- civil servants and employees of state- owned companies as well as private-owned companies to vote for a certain political party, it said.
"There was also vote buying from civil servants and the people for a certain political party. This included promises of bonuses for local polling committee officials or village chiefs who managed to increase the votes of a certain political party," it added.
The party's statement did not make a direct reference to the government-backed Golkar political organization as "the certain political party".
Golkar won 68 percent of the vote in the last election in 1992. The provisional results of this year's election show that Golkar scored a landslide victory by securing about 74 percent of the vote, the PPP 22 percent and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) 3 percent.
The results indicate that Golkar has secured 325 of the 425 House seats that were up for grabs, the PPP 90 seats and the PDI 10. More than 90 percent of the votes have been counted and the final tally is expected on June 23. (aan/39)