Residents urge Sentul village head to quit

BOGOR (JP): About 200 Sentul residents in Citeureup district here visited the regency legislative council on Thursday to campaign for the dismissal of their village head for being too authoritarian.

The residents, consisting of religious leaders, youths and women, asked the Bogor regent to dismiss the village head, identified as Endeng Daelimi, who has held his post for the last nine years.

"The angry residents originally headed for the village head's house to damage and burn it. But I managed to stop them and asked them to visit the council to express their complaint," Fahrudin, one of the religious leaders, said.

Forty residents' representatives were received by members of the council's Commission A for administrative affairs led by Farid Subagyo.

M. Toni Syahbana, another Moslem leader, said that he was once dragged by a group of hoodlums from his house and beaten in front of the village head's house for defending people who were involved in a land dispute with Daelimi.

Another resident, Yani, complained that he did not have an identification card because he had become a staunch supporter of the United Development Party (PPP), one of three existing parties, which also include Golkar and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).

The village officers frequently rejected Yani's application to renew her identification card, which had now expired.

"As a village head, he shouldn't have been partial to his own citizens, they can be members of Golkar, PDI or PPP," she said.

The village head was also opposed for not giving priority to local residents to work at factories built in the village, resident M. Nurdin said.

According to Fahrudin, on seeing the residents' dissatisfaction, Daelimi did not change his ways, but instead approached other religious leaders and residents who wanted to support him.

"Therefore it caused a split among residents of the village. We hope the council members can visit our village to have a close look at the situation," he said.

Muammal Sulaeman, an assistant to the regent, promised yesterday to investigate and process the matter in line with the existing law. (24/jun)