Court throws out Mesuji regency election results

A court has overturned the victory of Khamamik and Ismail Iskak in Mesuji regency’s election, stating that the pair was ineligible to run.

The Tanjungkarang Administrative Court ordered the Mesuji General Elections Commission (KPUD) to retract a decree that certified that Khamamik and Ismail had won the race.

The ruling, issued on Friday, favored the plaintiffs, the executive board of the Lampung branch of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

The nomination of Khamamik and Ismail, both PDI-P members, was opposed by the board, which meant their candidacy was void, according to the court.

“The Mesuji KPUD determined that Khamamik and Ismail were candidates, despite the fact that the pair did not go through the legal assessment process at the PDI-P,” lead judge Amir Hamzah said on Monday.

Failing to get the endorsement of the PDI-P’s Lampung branch, Khamamik and Ismail turned to the party’s Mesuji branch and the National Democrat Party.

The Lampung branch, led by Lampung Governor Sjachroedin Z.P., endorsed Ruswandi Hasan, who died on Sept. 15 before the election, and Sariaman as its candidates.

Khamamik and Ismail were supported by the Democratic Party, the Pioneer Party, Gerindra, Hanura, PKPB and the PPRN and won the election following Ruswandi’s death, collecting around 40 percent of the vote, followed by Iskandar Maliki and Agus Setio with 37 percent.

Ahmad Handoko, Khamamik’s lawyer, said his client would appeal.

Separately, in the Musi Banyuasin regency election in South Sumatra, Dodi Reza Alex and Islan Hanura, nominated by the Golkar Party and independent ticket Sulgani Pakuali and Sujari, have reportedly failed at the polls.

Based on quick counts conducted by several survey institutions, a third pair, Pahri and Beni, nominated by the National Mandate Party, the Democrat Party and the PDI-P garnered 53 percent of the vote to Dodi and Islan’s 45 percent, while Sulgani and Sujari received 3 percent.

Sulgani and Sujari’s campaign manager, Muchril Alfi, said the campaign would challenge the results due to numerous incidents of vote rigging and irregularities allegedly found by its members. “We reject the election’s results because we found many incidents of cheating. We have filed complaints,” he said.

The election should been halted due to problems with voter registration and allegations of vote buying.

“We have also found violations, such as the mobilization of civil servants, including agency heads, district chiefs and village chiefs, and the use of official cars,” he said.