'Public will judge' govt's reaction to PPP's protests

JAKARTA (JP): The United Development Party's (PPP) secretary- general said yesterday the public would judge the government by its response to growing protests over vote-rigging and election irregularities.

"People will just judge for themselves if the government decides to ignore the blatant and shameless election fraud," secretary-general Tosari Widjaya said.

"Let's wait and see how the government will respond to our party's protests," he said.

Tosari told The Jakarta Post that, despite earlier protests, most of the party's chapter and branches had indicated that they would endorse the election results.

The party is expected to announce a final decision on endorsement in the next few days.

"Our latest stance is to strongly protest (the alleged rigging and cheating)," Tosari said, referring to a statement of protest issued at the end of the party's three-day leadership meeting last week.

The statement said this year's election had been marred by "vote-buying, intimidation, mental and physical terror as well as other widespread blatant and shameless violations and fraud".

The central board's leaders have called on chapters and branches nationwide to take legal and political action against electoral fraud, which was allegedly mostly committed by local electoral committees.

"Politically, we've threatened not to sign the poll's final results and not follow the election's next phases. We are also preparing lawsuits against violators," Tosari said.

But he was pessimistic about the outcome of legal action. "We realize we can not rely 100 percent on court settlements," Tosari said.

All PPP chapters and branches, except the West Sumatra chapter and the branch in riot-stricken Sampang on Madura island, East Java, had agreed to sign the final results in their areas, he said.

The high-profile PPP Jakarta chapter, which has threatened not to sign final election results because of alleged widespread vote-rigging and irregularities, would sign next Monday, its chairman Rusjdi Hamka said yesterday.

Rusjdi denied the stance was an anticlimax, saying the chapter would proceed with legal action against alleged violators.

The West Sumatra PPP chapter's chairman, Darmadi, said yesterday his chapter would not sign "until the last minute". The chapter is protesting the local electoral committee's decision to dismiss its demand for a revote.

"Our choice not to sign will stand. We're sending a message to the government that we, the religious and democratic West Sumatrans, cannot tolerate fraud," Darmadi told the Post.

"The (PPP in) West Sumatra lost two seats at the House of Representatives because of the widespread fraud in the province. How can we accept it?" he said.

Asked whether the West Sumatra chapter's refusal to sign would cause the loss of PPP seats in the House, PPP deputy chairman Hamzah Haz said: "Not necessarily."

"The central board will summon (Darmadi) and ask him to explain why the chapter insists on not signing," Hamzah said.

He said the central board had the authority to "instruct" party chapters to accept election results. On Wednesday, the party's central executive board issued a statement indicating that it would let branches and chapters decide their own stance.

The deadline for signing final election results in regencies was yesterday. It is June 17 for provincial results and June 24 for national results. (aan)