Thousands protest huge fund used for council inauguration
Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post/Medan
Thousands of people staged a noisy rally here on Tuesday as the new North Sumatra legislative council was inaugurated, with two of its 85 members missing the swearing-in ceremony due to legal problems.
The protesters, from various organizations grouped under the Anticorruption Civil Society (Masak), opposed the alleged corruption of funds used for the inauguration of the councillors, who were elected in the April 5 legislative election.
The rally became frenzied as protesters briefly detained several councillors and pressured them to sign a political contract, under which they committed to refrain from corrupt practices.
However, hundreds of police officers who were guarding the ceremony dispersed the demonstrators.
Masak coordinator Iswansyah lashed out at the police for the way in which they had disbanded the protesters.
He said the protesters had asked the new councillors to sign the contract as there had been indications of alleged corruption in the use of funds from North Sumatra's budget for the inauguration ceremony.
Iswansyah, quoting information from the council's secretariat, said at least Rp 150 million (US$16,660) from this year's budget had been spent on the event.
However, data from the committee shows that the ceremony cost a total of Rp 179,631,300, he said, adding that the money did not include the funds allotted to procure uniforms for the 83 councillors, which cost Rp 7 million each.
"How will they (the newly sworn in councillors) be able to struggle for public interests, when, from the beginning, they are not clean?" Iswansyah asked.
"This action is to warn the council against easily embezzling people's funds," he told The Jakarta Post during the protest outside the council building on Jl. Imam Bonjol, here.
Council secretary Nurdin Lubis admitted that some Rp 22.5 million of the 150 million had been used to procure uniforms for the chairperson and secretary of the ceremony committee and nine other senior committee members.
The procurement of 129 national black caps for the councillors and committee members cost Rp 16,125,000 and the purchase of 129 pairs of black shoes of the Bucheri brand cost more than Rp 77,400,000, he added.
Nurdin declined to specify the funds allocated to provide uniforms for the 83 new councillors. But a council member said that it would cost up to Rp 7 million per person.
The 83 councillors for the 2004-2009 period were sworn in by the head of the North Sumatra high prosecutor's office. The inauguration of the other two elected members was postponed indefinitely.
The two -- Azwir Sofyan of the National Mandate Party (PAN) and Maria Sitompul of the Prosperous Peace Party (PDS) -- are facing legal problems for allegedly providing fake school diplomas.
They were excluded from the decree issued recently by Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno to install the new council of North Sumatra.