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Candidate commits suicide after poll upset
Fierce competition in elections last week has claimed its first life as a dejected candidate for the Banjar legislative council in West Java hung herself early Monday morning, Antara has reported
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Fierce competition in elections last week has claimed its first life as a dejected candidate for the Banjar legislative council in West Java hung herself early Monday morning, Antara has reported.
Residents of Cibarogol hamlet, Ciamis regency, West Java found Sri Wahyuni, who contested the election representing the National Awakening Party, hanging inside a hut near a paddy field on Monday morning.
Ongoing vote counts revealed that Wahyuni, who was eighth on the party’s list, stood little chance of securing a legislative seat.
Local Police Chief Adj. Comr. Sukardi said that with no evidence of physical abuse it was very likely that Wahyuni had committed suicide. Her body has been admitted to Banjar Hospital for an autopsy.
A witness told the police he greeted Wahyuni as she walked alone down a road in the hamlet early in the morning, but that she gave no response. The resident said he was neither curious nor aware of where she was heading.
The police have questioned Wahyuni’s family members, who said she left the house of her father-in-law unnoticed that morning. Her husband said he was asleep when his wife left their bedroom.
Sukardi said Wahyuni’s husband searched the village to locate his wife, but to no avail. He then reported Wahyuni’s disappearance to the police.
During the questioning, the family members said Wahyuni became severely depressed after learning her votes were far from enough to secure a legislative seat.
There have been many reports of legislative candidates admitted to mental hospitals after partial returns showed they fared poorly in the elections.
Under the new election system only candidates who win the most votes will secure legislative seats, forcing aspirants to actively campaign for themselves to win public support.
A Golkar candidate for the House of Representatives said he spent at least Rp 1 billion (US$88,500) on his campaign. In the North Sulawesi capital of Manado, Ratumbuysang Hospital has prepared five wards to treat legislative candidates who suffer from mental illness for being unable to accept defeat.
“We are just anticipating a rise in demand for intensive mental care,” the hospital’s director, BR Mokoagouw said Tuesday.
A mental health specialist, a psychologist and seven general practitioners have been prepared to anticipate an outbreak of mental illness among legislative candidates.
Director of Jiwa Grhasia mental hospital in Yogyakarta, Rohana Dwi Astuti, believes the impact of defeat in the elections on candidates’ mental health will be felt in two months.
She said the hospital has prepared 200 beds in economic and VIP wards, medication and health workers for legislative candidates who are expected to require treatment for depression.
