Ex-police chief reveals ‘crimes’ in E. Java polls

The Jakarta Post ,  JAKARTA   |  Tue, 03/17/2009 9:53 AM  |  Election 2009

Former East Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Herman Surjadi Sumawiredja has expressed strong disappointment with the Constitutional Court after it rejected a complaint over what he described as “serious election violations” during the province’s bitterly contested gubernatorial revote.

The Jan. 21, 2009, gubernatorial revote in the Madura Island regencies of Sampang and Bangkalan gave a slim victory to Soekarwo, recently sworn in as governor.

Speaking to the press here Monday, Herman, who was replaced by Brig. Gen. Anton Bachrul Alam at the end of February, said the Constitutional Court had consulted with the police before the latter had completed their investigation into the violations.

“We have since found clear evidence that proves the election violations were serious crimes and not administrative violations,” he said, adding the investigation into the case began with his own findings during a study tour of the two regencies during the revote.

Twice-defeated candidate Khofifah Indar Parawansa and her running mate Mudjiono filed a lawsuit with the court and the provincial police soon after the revote was conducted, but the provincial polling body (KPUD) declared Soekarwo the winner by a narrow margin soon after the court turned down the lawsuit.

With all the votes tallied, including in the two disputed regencies and a recount in the Madura regency of Pamekasan, Soekarwo and his running mate Syaifullah Yusuf won the election with 50.11 percent of votes, or 7,660,861 votes, leaving Khofifah with 49.89 percent or 7,626,757 votes. The difference was a slim 0.22 percent, or only 34,104 votes. The police found some 345,000 voters were actually ineligible to vote. According to the investigation that led investigators to name KPUD chairman Wahyudi Purnowo a suspect, some of the 345,000 ineligible voters were children aged below 17 years. The rest were either fictitious voters, or those who had already died.

Herman also said the provincial police, under his command, slowed down their investigation on orders from Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji, the National Police’s Crime Detectives head, for unspecified reasons.

Asked whether the fact he had recently been replaced was linked with his determination to investigate the case further, Herman accused the National Police of interfering in the probe and of chiding his chief investigator, telling him to drop the case. He also said he had submitted a request for early retirement to the National Police.

“I chose to quit the institution, to be able to speak freely about what really happened during the revote.” (hwa)

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